When Max finished he said. “I’m going to need an assistant.”
Aaron had just the person in mind. “Miroslav, Rayne here. Get down to the medical bay.”
Several minutes later Miroslav burst into the room gasping. “Commander, how can I help?”
“Lee is about to undergo surgery, Dr. Tanner here is going to need a good assistant,” he said.
The pilot’s shoulders drooped. “I’m not sure how I qualify, sir,” he said.
“You have an advanced first aid certificate, Flaps.” The cocky space aviator was about to argue further and Aaron held up his hand. “And you’re a pilot, you have steady hands. Assist the doctor. No more questions.” He turned back to Max. “Is there anything I can do, Max?”
Max snorted—a very unpleasant sound. “You can get out of our way and don’t disturb us for another six hours.”
Flaps seemed about to burst. Aaron silenced him with a glare.
“Six hours,” Aaron said. “Then we drop you off and we’re gone.”
“No shenanigans you, little rascal, I know you.”
Flaps looked at Aaron. “Rascal?” he enquired.
Aaron almost snickered but kept his tone neutral. “Quiet, Flaps, unless you want to fly paper planes from here on out.”
The helmsman had a look of confusion. “Aye, sir,” he said.
One hour after the operation commenced, Aaron sat on the bridge in the command chair as Phoenix jumped to high warp. Max would never notice the slight vibration throughout the decks and bulkheads as the ship jumped to light-speed. The initial jump always had that telltale sign, however, once at light speed they could increase to higher multiples of c without further signs of acceleration. He waited and prepared for the verbal assault Max would unleash when he found out Aaron tricked him—again.
****
Aaron’s comm buzzed—it was Max. “Aaron, get down to sickbay. Your boy is awake.”
Aaron vaulted off the bridge and down to deck three, nearly running head first into the sickbay doors before they parted to admit him. Someday, he was going to crack his skull on those slow doors.
Relief washed over him. He was surprised to see Lee sitting up in a recovery bed and staring at him.
Max approached and began his tirade. “Surgery was a success—I repaired his internal injuries caused by the projectiles to the back. That was easy. Then I prepped his arm and attached the prototype we brought aboard.”
Aaron raised an eyebrow. “All that in six hours?”
Max cackled. “Five hours and twenty minutes, actually. What? You think this is the dark ages of medicine? Cracking open a man’s chest to repair and unblock an artery? I’m a doctor, not a butcher. It took two hours just to adjust and test the link between his brain and the arm. That’s the hardest part of attaching a prototype bionic.”
“Max, you didn’t mention a prototype. You think Lee is an experiment?”
“No,” Max said. “But I have some theories on certain neurological mysteries plaguing medicine for some time. I could use a brain like yours to test it on since obviously it’s not working properly.”
Aaron put on his most harmless and innocent face. “What are you on about now, Max?”
“You thought I wouldn’t feel the jump to warp—I did. I was too concerned with my patient, however, to abandon him mid surgery. Not that I had anywhere to go. I said no shenanigans. I demand to know where you are taking me.”
Aaron grinned. “Well, Max, truth is after what happened to Lee, we need a physician on this mission. And he needed immediate help. Unfortunately, our timeline necessitated our prompt departure from Midea while you performed your magic.”
“Rayne! What mission? You know I hate prolonged spaceflight. I am going to cut your nuts off without anesthesia!”
“Well, that seems mildly inappropriate for such a minor transgression on my part. I wouldn’t have brought you along if I had another choice, you know that!”
The doctor’s voice raised several octaves. “Brought me along? You didn’t bring me anywhere, you’ve abducted me!”
“Calm down before you get a stroke or worse,” Aaron said.
“The only reason I don’t strangle you here and now is because I hate those stupid conferences, anyway. I have to endure them each year just to receive funding from tech-5 corporations. You have guest quarters I assume?”
Aaron nodded. “Ensign, show the cranky Dr. Hyde here to some suitable accommodations.”
The doctor fell in step with Miroslav and the two moved toward the exit. As they walked away, Aaron could hear Max issuing demands to the hotshot pilot.
“—Keep this ship steady now hear? No sudden course changes, full power on the inertia compensator thing. No flying in atmosphere and—”
They were gone. Aaron turned his attention to Lee. He couldn’t help but stare at the arm. Its smooth metallic finish reflected the overhead lights. The servo in the elbow was barely noticeable.
“How’s the karate kid feeling?” he asked.
Lee pushed himself up a bit. “Truthfully, Commander, I feel fine. A bit stiff in the back, but the doc said that’s a side effect of the medical nanites. It’ll pass within a day. They didn’t tell me anything when they woke me. Just summoned you. How’s Vee? What happened? Who attacked us?”
“Vee’s fine. We used a dose of nanites on his leg, repaired it within six hours of boarding Phoenix.”
“Phoenix?”
Aaron filled in Lee from the moment he dragged him and Vee into Star Runner and ending when he “abducted” the doctor.
Alvarez sauntered in.
Lee laughed hard. “I feel special.”
“Special? What’s the joke?” Alvarez asked.
“You guys space-jacked a doctor just for me. I’m really touched,” Lee said.
Aaron snickered. “Yeah well there’s only one Rigellian Stallion, and he’s my tactical officer, my crew and my friend.” Immediately he wished he hadn’t mentioned the fighter’s nickname.
Lee held up his new arm. “I don’t think I’ll be competing anymore.”
“Lee, you could take it off and you’d still win!” Aaron said.
A long moment passed. Lee just stared. Was the joke too morbid—too soon?
Then he laughed hard again.
“I’ll get an assistant to hold it for me when I take it off—I’ll give it to Vee,” he said.
Vee looked like someone shot his pet poodle. “That’s not funny at all.”
Lee waved him off. “Come on, Vee. This is nothing. The doc says I could lift up to one ton with this new arm. I could launch a man clear across twenty meters or something. A human shot-put.” The fighter grinned maniacally. “Just imagine what I can do to anyone who tries anything in the future.”
“I’m sorry, Lee,” Vee said.
“For what, Vee?”
“It’s just the last thing you said to me was, you’d make sure I kept my limbs . . . and now here you are missing your—original one.”
“Vee. Stop,” Lee said. “If you’re going to mope about my arm, you’re gonna be the first person I swat with it. End of discussion, I mean it Vee . . . Aaron . . .”
Aaron threw his hands up—these two constantly argued like a worried parent and child. “Vee, if you feel so strongly about it, just have the doctor give you one too!”
Another long moment stretched. Then laughter filled the medical bay.
Chapter 15 – Shenanigans!
Phoenix
Four weeks didn’t exactly warp by.