Nano Contestant - Episode 1: Whatever It Takes

by Leif Sterling

  “That’s why this is going to work. A surgery is medical. This Ivan guy is doing repairs and implants. He’s working on the gear, not the medical side.”

  Skylar pulled up a map to find Ivan’s. “Roland, this is over in the ghetto Russian warehouse district. That’s not safe.”

  “Found several forum posts about Ivan’s. Says he has done some good work with android optic installation and some other things.”

  Skylar rolled her eyes. “Wonderful.”

  “Sky, hand me the headset. I’m going to call him.” Roland adjusted the headset for his head. “How long do you think it will take to get the nanotech ready for the procedure?”

  “Well, your dad’s notes say about half a day.”

  Roland nodded and crossed his arms as he waited for the call to go through.

  “Ivan’s Optics,” said the gruff voice that was thick with a Russian accent. Skylar could hear him clearly even through Roland’s headset.

  Roland told him his name and gave him a quick rundown of what they wanted.

  “Roland. Da. I do that. I have equipment. Don’t you worry. You trust Ivan!”

  Roland asked if Ivan had a defibrillator.

  “Da! You not worry though. Ivan not let paying customers die. You not need ‘fibrillator. You trust Ivan!”

  Roland asked how much it was going to cost.

  “Ivan give you best deal. Use equipment is thousand dollars, new needles are two hundred. You want new needles right?”

  Roland raised an eyebrow. “Yes, I’d like new needles.”

  Skylar threw her hands up in the air.

  “Da! Good. Sterile important.”

  “Finally something we agree on,” whispered Skylar.

  “Plus Ivan’s time, costs about fifteen hundred cash. Oh, you want pain meds? That extra. I give you good pain meds.”

  “No, I won’t need them.”

  “Da! Good. You use Vodka, like me! Cheaper! Vodka better than pain meds anyway.”

  “No, that’s ok. Fifteen hundred dollars cash? Sounds good. How about tomorrow afternoon at two? Make sure you have the defibrillator charged and ready.”

  “Da! Tomorrow at two. Ivan will be ready. You trust Ivan and not need ‘fibrillator, but I have it ready for you.”

  Roland hung up and let out a low whistle. “You hear all that? Tomorrow at two at Ivan’s.”

  Skylar crossed her arms. “Oh, I heard every word. I think you’re completely insane for considering this.”

  “Ivan’s all we got. So you better get working on getting the nanotech delivery solution ready.”

  Skylar turned to go.

  Roland grabbed her shoulder. “Hey, wait a minute.”

  Skylar faced Roland. “What?”

  Roland’s face was serious. “Promise me that you won’t tell anyone about my dad or our plan.”

  Skylar nodded. “I promise.”

  “I know we’ll have to talk about our specific plans later on, just make sure no one else is around.”

  “Roland, you don’t have to worry. I know what’s at stake. I’m not going to say anything.”

  Roland relaxed a little. “Thanks.”

  CHAPTER NINE:

  TWO

  SKYLAR AND ROLAND took a cab over to the Russian warehouse district where Ivan’s Optics was located.

  The neighborhood took a dive fast just as soon as they passed the first warehouse. Graffiti covered nearly every wall. Rough looking dock workers loaded and unloaded hover cargo carriers. Most were burly and covered in tattoos. All looked like they were in desperate need of a bath, haircut and a shave.

  They passed an alleyway where the police lights were flashing, and the police were arresting a drug dealer.

  Finally, they pulled up in front of a dilapidated warehouse that had slightly less graffiti on it than the ones surrounding it. A fluorescent sign above the dock entrance said Ivan’s in bright red letters.

  Small bits of broken glass and debris littered the walkway up to the entrance.

  “Roland, we can still go back home.”

  Roland got out of the cab and took hold of Skylar’s hand and started to pull her out. “C’mon, Sky. Let’s go.”

  The warehouse door rolled up just before they could knock, and they were greeted by Ivan. He was a middle-aged man about six and a half feet tall. His full beard and long hair were streaked with grey. He wore coveralls and had a shop apron covered in stains and grime.

  “You Roland?” Ivan wiped his hands on his dirty apron and held out his hand to shake Roland’s.

  Roland’s hand was engulfed as Ivan shook it. “Yeah, I’m Roland. This is my friend, Sky.”

  Skylar gave a wave, but then she hugged her box tightly in order to avoid a grimy handshake.

  “She’s a pretty girl. Don’t see many pretty girls down here.” Ivan winked at Skylar.

  Roland deflected. “Well, can we see the equipment?”

  “Da, Da. Equipment in back. I have clean area.”

  They followed Ivan to the back of the warehouse, where they could see a well-lit, enclosed area. The windows on the side showed a room that looked very out of place in the warehouse. It was bright, clean and well outfitted with optics equipment.

  “Da, you are surprised, yes?” Ivan laughed heartily.

  “Yes, very surprised,” said Skylar.

  Roland turned towards Ivan. “Let’s go over the procedure again.”

  Skylar watched as Roland went through each step, and Ivan nodded frequently.

  “Da. We ready. You leave shoes outside clean room and go in and wait for me. I change clothes.”

  Roland and Skylar left their shoes and went inside to the clean room. The patient’s chair was purely one of functionality, not amenity. It was perfectly L-shaped and had three restraints rather than cushions.

  Roland sat down. “Comfy.”

  Skylar eyed the stiff looking chair. “Hey, this was all your idea.” She set her container on the table.

  Ivan returned. He was wearing hospital scrubs. His hair was pulled back in a pony tail. He set an old defibrillator down on the floor next to the operating table. “I check ‘fibrillator this morning. Good charge.” Then he straightened his posture and pretended to be an emergency room doctor. He rubbed the paddles together and then stuck out his arms towards Roland. “Clear!”

  Roland put up his hands to stop him. “Not yet! After the procedure!”

  Ivan guffawed loudly and put the paddles back onto the device. “I just joking! Funny! Da?”

  Skylar crossed her arms. “That wasn’t funny.”

  “Da! That very funny! You white as ghost!” Ivan pointed at her. “Pretty girl need to relax.”

  Skylar still looked cross. “I’m just fine.”

  Ivan turned to Roland. “Her need vodka, then her relax. Ok, You ready? Buckle all three seat belts.”

  “Ok.” Roland buckled the belt around his waist and his chest. Skylar buckled the last one which pinned his arms to his body and the chair.

  Ivan came over to inspect the buckles. “These need to be tighter.” Before Skylar or Roland could respond, he grabbed the tail end of each buckle and yanked even tighter. Roland’s shoulders turned white as the circulation was cut to a minimum.

  Skylar took a step towards Roland. “Roland, are you ok?”

  Roland wheezed a little. “It’s hard to breathe.”

  “Hard to breathe?” Ivan clapped his hands. “Da! That perfect. You not want to move during procedure.”

  Skylar eyed Ivan suspiciously but stepped back.

  Ivan moved quickly to set up his equipment. He performed each step confidently, never wasting an ounce of effort. He mounted a brace on the back of the L-shaped chair, which then extended over Roland’s head and was supported on Roland’s shoulders. He extended leather straps down from the top of the brace that buckled under Roland’s chin. “These make sure your head not move during procedure. You move, you go blind, Da?”

  “Mm-hmm,” was all Roland could get out.<
br />
  Ivan looked at the restraint settings carefully. “Can you move now?”

  “No,” Roland said through clenched teeth.”

  “Ok, we make a little tighter just to be sure, Da?” Ivan cranked each of the straps down one more notch. Roland’s face was scrunched together from the straps. Ivan looked the straps over again, but this time he smiled. “Da! Much better. Ivan make sure you not move now. Ivan always take good care of paying customers.”

  Skylar grimaced as she surveyed Roland’s restraints.

  “Ok, we almost ready!” Ivan set a large robotic arm on the table across from Roland. He extended the clamps from the base and cranked them down onto the table. He gave it a test shove to make sure it was secure. It didn’t budge. Next, he hooked up two wires to Roland’s neck.

  Skylar pointed to the wires. “What are those for?”

  “Vitals. Wires monitor vital signs.” Ivan turned towards the blank wall of the room and barked several commands in Russian to his computer system. There were two short beeps and then the center of the wall showed a camera view that was attached to the end of the robotic arm. All around the video feed were readouts showing Roland’s heart rate, blood pressure, body electrical conductivity and several other signals.

  “Ok, where is serum you want delivered?”

  Skylar opened the container on the table. “Right here. He needs four hundred milligrams. It has to be delivered at a rate of one hundred milligrams per minute.”

  Ivan took out a syringe package and held it up for Skylar and Roland to see. “See? You pay for new needle. Ivan delivered. You always trust Ivan!”

  Skylar looked at the package they had paid an extra two hundred dollars for. She wasn’t sure what Ivan’s alternative to the sterile syringe was or that she even wanted to know, but she did feel it was money well spent.

  Ivan put on a pair of latex gloves and then attached the needle to the end of the robotic arm. Then he went over to his keyboard and hit a few keystrokes. The robotic arm beeped and then rotated towards the container. “Move container next to robotic arm.”

  Skylar did as he asked. “Ok.”

  Ivan gave out some more commands in Russian. The robotic arm lowered the syringe into the liquid and then began to pull the thick clear liquid up into the syringe. “Ok! I put five hundred milligrams into syringe, but we only give Roland four hundred milligrams, ok?” Ivan winked at Skylar. “Ivan always prepared.”

  Skylar glared back at him.

  Ivan’s thunderous laugh echoed around the small room. “Now, we are ready? Da?”

  “Yes, Ivan. We’re ready. Go ahead.”

  Roland’s red face grunted.

  Then Ivan produced a shot glass and filled it with vodka.

  Skylar looked shocked. “You’re not going to drink alcohol before Roland’s procedure, are you?”

  Ivan grinned and then downed the vodka. “Russians always work better when drinking vodka.” Ivan poured a second shot of vodka and moved it to the other side of the table. “That one to drink if procedure is a success!”

  Skylar still looked stunned.

  “Pretty Girl, you not need to worry. Ivan never miss vodka after procedure. Always success!” Then Ivan barked a bunch of commands in Russian. A spotlight shown down on Roland’s face. The other lights in the room dimmed. The robotic arm snapped to attention and then began making a series of adjustments to line up the needle with Roland’s tiny pupil. The pneumatics of the arm hissed as air was pushed from them. The gears whirred and made grinding noises as the precision instrument calibrated itself for entry into Roland’s optic system. Then the machine went silent.

  Ivan took off his latex gloves and threw them in the waste basket. “Ok, shh! Ivan requires absolute silence.” He pulled on some thin black gloves and put on a helmet that covered his eyes and ears. “This very delicate work. Ivan uses immersion reality to give best control. You watch me on other screen.” Then he barked a few more commands in Russian.

  Skylar was familiar with immersion reality tech. Ivan’s helmet and gloves completely immersed him into the world he was working in. He would now be functioning as though he was the tip of the needle. The robotic arm would be following Ivan’s movements, but on a micro scale. This pinpoint accuracy would be exactly what was needed for a serum delivery like this.

  Roland was right, she thought. This just might work. It was the first time she had allowed herself to think that this whole procedure could actually be a success.

  CHAPTER TEN:

  FOUR

  SKYLAR FELT HELPLESS and frustrated and scared as she looked at Roland. She couldn’t imagine what Roland must be feeling.

  Ivan bellowed in Russian again. This time, a green holographic sphere, the size of a basketball, appeared at chest level for him. He slowly moved his hands over the ball, like he was rolling it. The robotic arm clanked and whirred in unison, although on a smaller scale. Ivan gave the ball a hard shove and it began to roll quickly, but the robotic arm only moved a centimeter. “Hey, Pretty Girl, you give Roland wooden blocks to hold.” He pointed to a shelf on the side of the room.

  Skylar got up and grabbed two of the blocks. “Why? What are they for?” They were pieces that had been sawed off the end of a two by four.

  Ivan’s wide grin looked stranger than usual with his immersion reality helmet on. “He not taking pain meds and no vodka. He will need something to hold on to.”

  Skylar paused before giving Roland the blocks. “I’ll hold his hand.”

  Ivan guffawed. “Pretty Girl, he will break your hand, da? Better he hold onto blocks when pain gets bad.”

  Skylar put a wooden block into each of Roland’s hands.

  Roland wheezed and then mumbled something unintelligible.

  Ivan rolled his sphere a few inches to the right. “Ok. Ready, da?” The wall screen showed the needle that was pointed directly at the center of Roland’s right pupil.

  Skylar bit her fingernail. “Ok.”

  Roland mumbled again. He was staring straight ahead, but he couldn’t see the needle because it was too close.

  Ivan chuckled. “Roland, listen. Ivan has three levels of pain. You count on fingers and Pretty Girl will tell me. That way I know if you need to rest. One finger means pain is good, make you feel alive. Two fingers means pain is bad and you wish you were dead.” Ivan rolled his sphere a little to the left.

  Skylar crossed her arms. “What is number three?”

  Ivan’s smile returned in full force. “Three fingers means you wish Ivan was dead.”

  Roland mumbled. “Mm-hmm.”

  Ivan’s bellowing laugh followed and echoed around the room. “Da! Now we begin!”

  Skylar stepped a little closer to watch.

  Ivan barked a few more commands in Russian. The robotic arm retracted the needle back into its framework. Two small flat metal pieces extended from the end of the arm. The ends were coated in silicone. “First, we secure the eyeball, so it not move. These are my spatulas.” Ivan expertly spun and rotated his holographic sphere and the spatulas mimicked his movements. They slid underneath the top and bottom eyelids at the same time.

  Roland grunted.

  “Now, I pull eyeball tight. Roland, you not going to like this.” Ivan’s fingers danced around the ball, which would light up with each touch. “My spatulas are sliding around the top of your eyeball, so I can grip it from behind. Also keep you from blinking.”

  Roland’s breathing was short and fast as he anticipated the pain.

  “You breathe slow, da? Take three deep breaths.”

  Roland started breathing more slowly.

  “Easy, da? Ok, now you take deep breath. You breathe out slowly while I pull eyeball into locked place, da?”

  Roland took a deep breath in slowly through his nose.

  Skylar did too.

  “You breathe out now, da?” Ivan pushed his hands inside the green hologram and grabbed what looked like two bars and began to pull them towards the outside of the sphere.

/>   Roland began to slowly exhale, not sure what to expect. Then, he felt it. The spatulas slowly pulled his eyeball forward. Extending it just past the edge of his skull. He grunted and groaned. The nerves behind his eyeball were being pulled tight. It was the kind of feeling that made the rest of his skin crawl. He broke out in a cold sweat. He gripped his wooden block hard and extended his index finger.

  Skylar had been watching Roland’s hands. “Ivan, he’s holding up one finger.”

  “Da! Very good. That means he is alive.”

  Skylar didn’t look convinced.

  Ivan pulled his hands out of the sphere and began rolling the ball again. The needle extended from its position within the framework towards Roland’s pupil. He stopped it just short of the entry point. “Roland, I have the needle just in front of your eyeball now.”

  Roland grunted and continued exhaling slowly.

  “I must go in very slowly, or I will risk damaging your sight, da? You must be absolutely still. No matter what, you not move. You continue to breathe very deep and slow. You think about something else.” Ivan turned his head slightly towards Skylar. “Pretty Girl, you come over here and help him. You tell him how to breathe. Him need to hear something other than the pain he feels, but don’t get in the way, da?”

  Skylar moved next to Roland. “I’m here, Roland.”

  Roland grunted. “Mm-hmm.”

  Ivan rolled his ball forward. “Ok, Roland. You take nice deep breath and hold it.”

  Roland filled his lungs as much as his restraints would allow him. He could see the blurry figure of Skylar out of his left eye. Out of his right eye, all he could see was the large grey blob that he knew to be the needle.

  “Roland, I go forward only when you are breathing out. Then I stop and you rest, da? Exhale now and listen to Pretty Girl.”

  Roland began to exhale.

  Ivan rolled his green holographic ball forward.

  Skylar tried to look encouraging. “That’s it, Roland. Keep breathing out. You got this.”