I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that made all the difference.
---Robert Frost, The Road Not Taken, 1916.
Chief surgeon of the trauma clinic on Maghira Drift usually didn't make supply trips. But Doctor Gillian Ratischer ceased the opportunity to get away from her daily routine and see her father at the same time. So she took her superintendent's newest acquisition, cargo ship with added combat capabilities, sleekly shaped with silver hull, wing-like attachments and adequately named Pegasus, and took off.
Two weeks flew by and she was on her way back to Maghira. She already had the drift on her long-range sensors when an urgent communication came in. When she turned her vid screen on, she saw her clinic in ruins, Magog everywhere and her superintendent's bloodied face.
"Gillian! The place is swarming with these creatures, I am the last one alive and I've been infested, as almost everyone else here and on the rest of the drift."
"Martin, is there anything I can do?"
"Yes. Pegasus has decent firepower; I need you to target the fuel reservoir and fire at it." "But it will…"
"It will destroy all the monsters that did this to us and all their potential offspring. This is the only thing you can do now. I am signing off. Good-bye, Gillian, it was good knowing you."
The transmission ended. Gillian brought Pegasus in range and locked target. It took a few shots and than she saw the drift go up in flames. 'Good bye, my friends,' she thought and turned the ship around. Not experienced in space warfare she did not account for the flying debris and caught large piece of something in Pegasus' tail right when entering slipstream. The ship shook and sparks flew all over the place, she barely made it to the exit point when the engines blew. She was stunned momentarily unconscious but came about quickly. The cabin was smoky, and the pesky computer voice kept repeating: 'Warning! The engines are off-line! Warning! The engines are off-line!'
"Ok, ok, Peggy, I know that. Initialize core shutdown, and record a distress message."
"Core shutdown initiated. Beginning recording."
"This is Doctor Gillian Ratischer. My ship is disabled and I may be followed by the Magog. I need immediate assistance."
"Peggy, transmit on all frequencies."
"Message transmitted."
"Ok, let's take care of the fire and see what can we do with the engines." Gillian took the fire extinguisher and went around Pegasus putting out small fires started by the electrical sparks. She was down to the last one when Pegasus informed her of incoming transmission.
"On screen, Peggy." The vid screen lit up and she saw a beautiful dark-haired young woman looking at her.
"Doctor Ratischer?"
"Yes."
"I am Starship Andromeda Ascendant, I have received your distress call."
"Thank God. I was loosing hope. You are an avatar, right?"
"Yes, that is correct."
"Wonderful. I have... had many friends and colleagues who were AIs. Maghira Drift was a mixed community." Another woman appeared on vid next to Andromeda, this one blond and blue-eyed:
"What do you mean -- was? What happened to it?"
" The Magog happened. I was away on the supply trip combined with family visit. When I returned, the drift was swarmed. My hospital included. The last request of my superintendent was to blow the place up. Apparently it was not the feeding but the breeding trip. So that's what I did. I targeted the drift's fuel reservoir and … Pegasus got hit by the flying debris, I barely made it out of the slipstream." The blond woman's face was sympathetic.
"I am sorry. Oh, I didn't introduce myself, Acting First Officer Rebecca Valentine."
"Pleasure to meet you, Ms. Valentine, Andromeda."
"Call me Beka. We are moving in your direction, but it will take a while. Our Captain is close to you now, he is returning from a piece conference on Thamiris. He is on my ship, the Eureka Maru. We transmitted your coordinates to him; he'll contact you shortly."
" Thank you." At this time, another face popped into view -- purple-skinned blond young woman, a girl even, asked with concern, "Are you hurt? Do you need medical assistance?" Gillian smiled: " No, I am fine, thank you. Even if I was, I can take care of most problems myself, I am a surgeon."
"Ok," purple face smiled back," I had to ask."
"And I appreciate it. What is your name?"
"Trance Gemini, Acting Medical Officer and Environmental Specialist. It would be good to have a real doctor here, I could learn a lot from you."
"I am sure you are a capable medic, Trance, but I will gladly share my knowledge with you." Trance smiled: "Good."
In a little while Peggy informed Gillian of an incoming transmission. The vid screen lit up and she saw a handsome man looking at her with concern.
"Doctor Ratischer?"
"Yes. Captain Hunt, I presume?"
"Yes. I received the information from Andromeda. I am sorry about what happened."
"Thank you, Captain."
"I am in position now to lock Pegasus in tow with Maru. After that, would you like to join me here for the duration of the return trip?"
"Yes, it would be nice. I could use some company."
"Well, that's settled, then. Let's get you secured."
Several hours later Gillian walked in from the Maru's docking bay and was greeted by Captain Hunt.
"Doctor Ratischer, welcome," he extended his hand and when she took it, it felt unusually hot. Looking closer at Hunt's face she saw his eyes were red and glassy, face flushed and his whole body tremored slightly.
"Captain, forgive me, but are you feeling alright?"
"Nothing to forgive. I seem to have picked up some sort of bug on Thamiris. I'll shake it off in a day or two. And please, call me Dylan."
"Gillian. Do you mind if I ran a quick scan of you? You do feel awfully hot."
"Really, Doc, I don't think it's necessary. I don't like to make much fuss about me. Please, follow me to the cabin. Your ship is secured in tow and we should rendezvous with Andromeda in a few hours." Dylan turned around intended on leading Gillian to the main cabin when he almost fell down, overcome by sudden wave of dizziness. The world span around him in wild whirlwind and he would have been flat on his face in a second if a pair of small but strong arms didn't grab him first. Gillian steadied him on his feet.
"Dylan, which way to the crew quarters? You need to lie down."
"To the left. I don't know what came over me, I apologize…"
"No apologies necessary. As to what came over you -- I have an idea, but I'll know for sure as soon as I run a scan."
Gillian brought Dylan to the first room she found, to him it looked like it was Beka's, but concentrating got suddenly very hard. He couldn't remember when was the last time he felt that bad. Gillian pulled a portable scanner from her bag and after few seconds Dylan heard a quiet 'o-oh'.
"What is it?"
"Well, I was hoping to be wrong, but unfortunately I'm not. You have Therellian Malaria. It is very similar to old-fashioned Earth Malaria but when the Earth version is only transmitted through blood, this one is highly contagious. The good part is -- if you survive it, you develop the immunity."
"If you survive it?"
"For people weakened by other illnesses or with compromised immune system it could be lethal. For you, judging by your physical fitness, it well be a very unpleasant week, maybe ten days, hopefully without any complications. However, you are stuck here with me -- I cannot allow you to risk spreading it among your crew and since I already had it, I am immune and since I am a physician I am very much capable of taking care of you."
"Are you sure? I mean, you don't even know me. Andromeda can send a drone or two here and you don't have to stay."
"I think the fever is starting to affect your brain, Captain. You answered my distress call, offered me the hospitality of Maru and Andromeda, managed to secure my ship and the cargo it is carrying not knowing me and you telling me that I shouldn't care for you because I 'don't even know you'? I am a doctor, and it is my job, if not anything else, to care for you. In case you don't fully understand, Captain Hunt, you are ill, and Therellian Malaria is a severe and debilitating disease. Now, I am staying here with you until you get well and you are to follow my orders and take your medications without arguments. Did I make myself clear?"
"Yes, Ma'am," even though Gillian schpiel sounded pretty severe, she smiled and Dylan couldn't help smiling back. 'She had a beautiful smile…' he thought to himself. 'She is a very attractive woman… I wonder if… Whoa, down, boy! You just met her…'
Pulling out of his musings he suddenly realized that he was already undressed and the blanked neatly ticked in around him. He blushed furiously, but Gillian pretended she didn't notice. From her own experience she knew that soon he would need her help in much more then taking his clothes off. She saw that he kept shivering -- the fever was climbing up.
"Gillian?"
"Yes"
"How bad will it get?"
"I can't tell. With every person it is different, but one thing I know -- it will get worse before it gets better. The worst part is, this disease is viral in nature, so it is not responsive to antibiotics. It is up to your body's internal defenses to fight it. At this stage I can't even inject the nanobots, they may do more harm then good. The bottom line is that you have to ride it out on your own. I'll try to keep the fever down and make you as comfortable as possible."
"I am grateful."
"Don't mention it. I need to get in touch with Andromeda to let them know what is going on here. I hope she will come soon, I am worried that if we encounter hostile ships we'll be in trouble. I am not much of a fighter."
"You can… contact her from that console… in the corner." It was obvious that even speaking was difficult for him now. Gillian was worried; the illness was taking over with the force of a tidal wave.
After the conversation with Rommie and Beka Gillian agreed that while it was not safe to bring Dylan aboard it would be best to dock Maru inside Andromeda so the extra help will be available immediately should it be required. Beka assured Dylan and Gillian that she will get Andromeda to the rendezvous point in no time. Turning attention to her patient Gillian saw that the fever was rising still and his breathing became labored. She filled the hypospray and brought it to his neck. Seeing the question in his eyes, she said:
"I am trying to bring the fever under control, hopefully it will make you feel a little better and will help you sleep. You need all the rest you can get," he tried to answer but she stopped him: "Don't talk, just close your eyes and sleep." He obeyed, mouthed 'Thank you' and closed his eyes. Gillian squeezed his hand lightly and pulled up the covers to his shoulders. Few minutes later her patient was asleep and she went to look around Maru. She needed to familiarize herself with the ship; it looked like she'll be spending a long time here.
* * *
Another blow split his lip and he tasted his own blood. He lost count of them already, he lost count of how many times he repeated his name, rank and number, but he kept saying it over and over and over again, and his interrogator was relentless and the blows kept coming. Suddenly the solder caught him in the solar plexus and Dylan was no longer able to breathe. He struggled desperately to draw air into his burning lungs but to no avail. The room, the world around him began to blur…
He woke up gasping and coughing and realized that he was on the Maru and Gillian was sitting next to him, helping him to sit up and holding an oxygen mask to his face to help him breathe.
"Hush, you are OK, you are on the Maru, try and breathe, in through your nose, out of your mouth, on the count of four. OK, that's it, good boy." Gillian smiled at him. She kept holding him up and rubbed his back in light circular motions, "keep breathing," he moved the mask away from his face, "thanks, I'm better now."
"Good," she raised the head part of the bed, keeping Dylan in semi-sitting position, "this way it'll be easier for you to breathe." She brought the hypo up to his neck and pressed on the injector. Dylan winced at the sting but said nothing. She wanted to say something else but the communication console lit up with the image of Trance:
"Hi, we are here. Dylan? Are you alright? Dylan?"
"Fine, Trance, nothing to worry…" Another bout of violent coughing prevented him from continuing. Trance looked very worried. Gillian intervened:
"Trance, we better let him rest. I'll patch you through to the bridge; we'll talk there," she punched the codes in and left the room.
Gillian walked up to the comm screen on the bridge of the Maru. By that time Rommie and Beka joined Trance and all looked concerned. Beka started:
"Gillian, what is happening to him?"
"The disease is affecting his respiratory system. He has difficulty breathing; the coughs are reaction to bronchial spasms. The medication I gave him is working but not fast enough. I already explained to Dylan that Therellian Malaria is not responsive to antibiotics, so my only option is symptomatic treatment and support for his heart and brain functions. The symptoms usually manifest in a particular order -- respiratory problems, muscle spasms and pains, all accompanied by bouts of extremely high fever and lastly a long period of extreme weakness and fatigue." "Do you have what you need there? I know Maru is not well stocked on medical supplies."
"Beka, you are forgetting that I have a ship full of medical supplies." Trance chimed in:
"Gillian, I was studying Andromeda archives on medicine and I found mentioning of very old Earth practice of using plants and herbs in healing various diseases…"
"Trance, you are a genius! I was thinking the same thing, actually I did a lot of research on this subject. Before the age of technological and chemical approach, herbs and plants were the only option available to people, and most of the time they did wonders when correctly administered."
"Well then, we are lucky because I am growing a number of them in Hydroponics. I have eucalyptus tree, aloe, elderberries, Echinacea, Marigolds… But I don't know how to collect or prepare them…"
"Never mind, I do. I am transmitting you a list of herbs and instructions for them. When you done, send them here with a droid. Meanwhile, let's get Maru and Pegasus docked. Pegasus controls are switched to Maru and I understand that you can operate the Maru remotely?"
"Yes, we can."
"In that case I better get back to my patient."
Gillian walked into her makeshift infirmary just in time to see Dylan getting up. Before she had a chance to stop him, he lost his balance and fell, hitting his head. After a couple of futile attempts to get up he gave up. Only then he realized that he had an audience. By the look on Gillian's face he judged that she was not thrilled by his 'performance'.
"What the hell do you think you are doing?"
"I had to do something that you can't help me with, so I needed to get up."
"So, you'd rather kill yourself than ask me to help you to use the bathroom?"
"I can manage THAT on my own, thank you."
"Yes, I can see that. I am sure you'd have been on your merry way by now if the floor didn't jump and hit you in the head, right?" Gillian helped Dylan up and sat him down on the bed. He swayed slightly, but remained sitting. Gillian saw a trickle of blood coming from a cut right above his eyebrow, and a bruise was already forming on his cheek.
"C'mon, let's get you where you were going and after that I'll fix your face, OK?"
"Alright."
A little wile later Dylan was back in bed, the cut on hid forehead sealed and ice patch applied on the bruise. Gillian sat on the edge of the bed and took his hand.
" Look, Dylan, unfortunately we are going to be here for a while. As I told you before, it'll get worse before it gets better. You have to let me help you and you shouldn't be embarrassed to accept my assistance. Forget that we are a man and a woman, right now we are a doctor and a patient."
"Easy for you to say…" he muttered sidewise. How was he supposed to forget that she is a woman and he is a man when every time she came close or touched him his body reminded him about it?
"I am sorry, what was that?"
"Whatever you say … warden." He smiled at her and Gillian was thrilled to see a twinkle of humor in his eyes. When her patients were laughing, her hopes were high. She gently touched his face and frowned; the fever was again climbing up. Gillian gave Dylan another injection and watched him drift off to sleep.
* * *
Checkered floors of the Presidential Palace basement started to make him dizzy. The walk felt endless and he was glad when they finally made it to the Ferrin's office. The door opened and everything started as in slow motion. He felt frozen, he saw a gun in Ferrin's hand, saw it point at him, felt the impact of the pellet and the explosion of pain. But instead of a bleeding wound he saw a fire burning in his abdomen and spreading all over his body. The agony was unbearable and Dylan screamed… and woke up with the scream still on is lips. Gillian was instantly at his side, comforting arm around his shoulders. He was hot as a furnace and obviously in a lot of pain. She saw that his lips were cracked and his skin felt very dry. He blinked but there were no tears in his eyes. He was beginning to show signs of dehydration and it was not good. Gillian brought an IV kit and took his arm looking for good vein.
"What are you doing?"
"You are not getting enough fluids, so I'll have to give them to you intravenously. I need to flush your system to help you get rid of the virus. Medications and herbs don't seem to be doing the trick."
"I hate needles."
"I am sorry, love, I put it off for as long as I could but I have no choice now. I'll be quick, I promise." ‘Did she just call me "Love" ,‘ Dylan though to himself, but didn’t say anything.
Gillian kept her word and it was all over in the matter of minutes. She took a cool wet towel and gently wiped his face and chest.
"That feels good, thank you."
"Just try to go back to sleep."
"What about you?"
"What about me?"
"It have been almost two days since you came aboard, you need to rest too."
"I will. When you are better," he wanted to argue but Gillian pressed a finger to his lips:
"Shush. Go to sleep, doctor's orders."
Unexpected even to himself, Dylan took her hand and kissed the palm of it. The gesture took her by total surprise, but before she could say anything he was (or pretended to be) asleep.
He slept fitfully, tossing and turning, talking in his sleep, sometimes moaning in pain. Gillian kept bathing him with cool water to bring the fever down, to make him more comfortable, but his temperature kept rising and soon episodic nightmares blurred into state of delirium. Hours stretched into days; Dylan didn't know anymore where he was and who was with him; he kept re-living his past missions, especially the ones gone bad. At one point Gillian had to restrain him to simply prevent him from hurting himself. Beka and the rest of the crew were very worried. Rommie insisted on coming aboard Maru to help Gillian, but Gillian seemed to be the only person able to keep him calm. The fever kept rising and falling, each rise coming up higher then the one before and each fall leaving Dylan even more exhausted. But finally his fever broke and he fell into a deep healing sleep.
* * *
Dylan slowly opened his eyes and took in his surroundings. It appeared that he was on the Maru, somehow in bed in Beka's quarters. He felt that his hair was wet and when he lifted his hand to touch it he felt a small stab of pain and realized that he had an IV line connected to his right arm. He started to remember things. He was ill, very ill. There was a woman, a doctor taking care of him… He blushed at the memory and carefully peeked under the blanket. Thank the Divine he was dressed. He looked around the room and smiled -- Gillian -- that's her name, Gillian, -- was sitting on the floor, her head pillowed on her arms at the edge of his bed and she was sound asleep. Dylan touched his communicator:
"Beka? Rommie?"
"Dylan!" Beka's voice sounded in his ear. "How are you? Where is Gillian? What's going on?"
"Beka, take it easy. I'm much better. Can you get a visual?"
"Sure thing!" In a few seconds the comm screen lit up and Dylan saw Beka, Rommie, Harper and Rev looking at him.
"Rommie, can you run a scan and let me know if it is safe for me to come to Andromeda?"
"Scanning. Yes, Dylan, there is no trace of the virus on you or in the Maru's atmosphere. You may safely return to your own quarters. I will send droids to assist you."
"Great. I need you to assign quarters to Dr. Ratischer. I have a feeling she is going to need a lot of rest."
"Absolutely, Dylan."
* * *
Gillian woke up and stretched lazily without opening her eyes. Somehow she knew that there was no hurry to get up. An unexpected sound of a man's voice made her jump:
"Good to see you finally up. I thought we would need a miracle to wake you." Gillian opened her eyes and saw Dylan sitting in the chair close to her bed. The room was not familiar, and answering the unspoken question, Dylan said:
"You are on Andromeda in your quarters. Rommie took the liberty of choosing them for you.
"I don't remember coming here."
"You didn't. You were brought here. After all, I couldn't leave you sleeping on the floor on the Maru."
"And what are you doing out of bed, Dylan? You should be resting."
"Gillian, I am fine. Still a bit weak, but perfectly capable of getting around."
"Right. Only yesterday…"
"Gillian, it was three days ago."
"What?!"
"You were asleep for three days. I am not surprised, considering that you were on your feet for a week taking care of me."
"I am. It doesn't usually take me that long to rest after a long shift. Guess it's time to get up and smell the coffee -- assuming you have any."
"My first officer is an addict, so there is never shortage of coffee on Andromeda. Get up if you feel like it, and I'll introduce you to my crew."
"Would you mind if I had breakfast first? I'm starving."
"Not a problem. I haven't eaten myself yet, so if you don't mind company…"
"Done. Give me fifteen minutes," Gillian got off the bed, wrapping the sheet around her like a toga, grabbed her bag and disappeared into the bathroom. When she was getting up Dylan saw a strange tattoo on her left forearm and made a mental note to ask her about it.
After a stopover at the mess hall for breakfast, Dylan took Gillian to the command deck to meet the crew. On the way, he stopped her for a second:
"Gillian, I have to warn you. One of my crew is Magog, and another is Nietzschean. I…"
"Dylan, I don't hold prejudices against individuals, even though both species have reputations and I had dealt with both n the past."
"I like your attitude. Shell we?" He gestured for her to enter the Command Deck. The official introductions were made and Gillian found the crew of the Andromeda to be pleasant and easygoing bunch. She turned to Dylan:
"I thought you said one of the crew was a Nietzschean?"
"Yes, our Tactical and Weapons Officer. He is on the away mission right now but we expect him back soon," Gillian was about to ask Trance something when Harper grabbed her left arm:
"Hey, I've seen that before! This is a prison mark! What did you do? Must've been freaking big! "Gillian visibly tensed and answered curtly, "nothing that is important now," turning to Dylan: "Captain, you mentioned that Andromeda has good exercise facilities, with your permission I'd like to use them."
"Absolutely. Rommie can take you…"
"Thank you, but I am sure I can find my way there," and she left Command. Dylan turned to Harper who right now wished to be invisible:
"I suggest that you start using your brain for things other then engineering, mister Harper. Does the word 'tact' mean anything to you?" With that he exited Command and went to his quarters. Changing into sweats he followed Gillian to the gym.
When he approached the entrance, he heard sounds of punches and kicks thrown in rapid successions. Walking in he saw Gillian trying to murder the boxing bag. Hands wrapped in strips, feet bare she was working the bag like it was her mortal enemy.
"Need a sparring partner?" Dylan spoke up. " I don't think this bag can take anymore of your punishment. " Gillian turned her head towards him:
"I don't think you can handle me now. I'm just too angry to pull punches."
"I am not asking you to."
"I can't spar with you, Dylan, you are still recovering…" He interrupted almost angrily:
"I am not an invalid, Gillian. Are you afraid?" His eyes held challenge.
"OK, you asked for it." She turned around to face him, taking fighting position. "C'mon, let's see what you've got, High Guard."
"I remember you saying that you are not much of a fighter."
"In space, Captain, in space. I never said anything about hand-to-hand. So, what are you waiting for?"
Dylan and Gillian circled each other for a while when Dylan lost his patience and made the first move. And the match began. It was not a long one. Gillian used her small size to her advantage, bringing Dylan down over and over again. He didn't have to control his strength with her simply because none of his kicks or punches were getting through. When he landed on his back for the third time he decided against getting up and raised his hands in mock defeat:
"OK, ok, I give up!" Gillian stood over him and offered her hand. He too it, pretended to pull himself up and suddenly yanked her down. Gillian lost her footing and fell down on him. He held her tightly so she wouldn't fall and suddenly became very aware of the position they were in and his body's reaction to it. She realized it too, almost yelling at him:
"Damn you, Hunt, let me go before I hurt you!"
"I don't think you are in any position to hurt me right now, Gillian."
"Think again!" She brought her feet up to his stomach and pulling him by the neck rolled them both over backwards, so she was on her back, and then, using her legs she pushed Dylan hard up and back over her head, so he went sailing over her and landed on his back with a loud thud and a curse. Gillian jumped up and stood over him seething:
"I told you to let go. When you loose, admit it. I warned you not to spar with me, I warned you to let go, but no, you insisted on having it your way and now I probably caused you a concussion." A calm and strangely familiar voice interrupted her speech:
"I taught this move to only one person. But I was told she was dead." Gillian froze. Not turning around she said:
"Tyr Anasazi of Kodiak Pride, out of Victoria by Barbarossa. I hoped you were dead. I hoped that I wouldn't have to see you ever again. I guess I am just not that lucky." Extending her hand to Dylan:
"Let's go. I want to see the damage to your head and then I need a shower. " She helped Dylan up and without turning back she left the gym. He followed, but not before turning to Tyr and telling him:
"We'll talk later."
Gillian stormed out of the gym and collided with Beka, who listened to their heated exchange in complete surprise. So, Gillian knew Tyr and moreover, there was some kind of history between those two. Beka also saw the way Dylan looked at Gillian and realized he had it in for her and bad. She liked their new friend and wanted to help her and the others to straighten things out. Steadying Gillian, Beka asked:
"Is everything alright?"
"Just peachy, thank you."
"Do you want to talk about it?"
"There is nothing to talk about."
"Yeah, right. Look, Dylan cares about you and eventually will want an explanation."
"How in dickens can he care about me, he's only known me for a week and most of this time he's been unconscious."
"He is just that kind of a guy, once he meets you, he kind of adopts you. One ancient earth writer once said -- we are responsible for those we tame."
"Yes, the Fox said that to the Little Prince."
"Well, Dylan is our Little Prince. And now he feels responsible for you."
"He shouldn't. As soon as Pegasus is fixed and Andromeda is in range of any planet with functioning medical facility, I'll be on my way."
"Dylan was hoping that you'd stay."
"What?!"
Gillian felt a hand on her shoulder. She knew it was Hunt and tensed. He spoke:
"Actually, Beka, I was planning to ask Gillian myself."
"Oops! Sorry, Dylan, it just slipped out..."
"Doesn't matter, what's done is done. Gillian, could we talk?"
"Not now. I want to go to Medical and have a look at your head. "
"It can wait."
"I threw you pretty hard, you may have a concussion. After you, Captain."
"Yes, Ma'am."
In Medical Gillian gave Dylan an ice pack for the bump on his head and ran a quick scan to make sure he didn't suffer any serious trauma. Satisfied with the result she instructed him to keep the cold compress on for at least half an hour and turned to leave. Before she had a chance to exit, Dylan moved between her and the door. Taking both of her hands in his he looked her in the eyes:
"Why won't you talk to me? Why Tyr got you so upset?"
"I can't talk about it."
"Why? You don't trust me enough, is that it?"
"No, that's not it. I can't because it still hurts. It all happened ten years ago and it still hurt. You saw the tattoo that Harper got so worked up about?"
"Yes. I saw it a while ago but waited for the right moment to bring it up."
"Tyr is the reason I have it. That is all I can say for now." She turned around and left the infirmary. When she got to her quarters she headed straight for the shower and for a long time she stood under hot water, unable to move, frozen in memories. After a while she got out, dressed and sat down in a chair, looking at the stars in the window. Few hours passed and holoimage of Rommie shimmered in front of her.
"Gillian, the dinner is served at seven, do you have any preferences?"
"No, thank you. If you don't think me very rude I'd like to stay here tonight, I am not really hungry."
"By all means. Is there anything you need?"
"No, thank you."
"You are welcome. Please let me know if there is anything I can do for you."
"Thank you, Andromeda."
The holoimage disappeared. The room gradually became dark, but Gillian didn't turn the lights on. She just sat there, motionless. She didn't realize her past held so much pain until she was forced to face it. It was all buried deeply inside her, hidden, forgotten. Until now. Well, she'll bury it again and move on, just like before. She'll build new life yet again. Too bad now she'll have more to forget. With that resolution Gillian went to bed.
Dylan woke up with a start. After a few seconds he realized what woke him up. Someone was screaming -- in terror, in pain -- he didn't know.
"Andromeda?" Rommie shimmered into view. "What is going on?"
"It's coming from Gillian's quarters." Dylan, already on his way out ordered:
"Override the locks, authorization Captain Dylan Hunt, I'm going in there."
"Overriding... Done."
Dylan burst into Gillian's room ready to take on an army, but there was no one there except Gillian. She was having a nightmare. Dylan turned to the hologram:
"Rommie, I'll handle it. Engage privacy mode."
"Privacy mode engaged."
Dylan sat on the bed next to Gillian. She was thrashing, crying, repeating "No, please don't! I told you the truth!" He gently touched her shoulder:
‘Gillian, wake up! Please wake up!’ She sat bolt upright in bed and looked at Dylan, obviously not understanding for a moment what is going on. She also didn't realize she had nothing on and when she sat up the sheets fell down to her hips. Then the realization came and she hurriedly picked up the covers and wrapped them around herself.
"Dylan, what are you doing here?"
"You woke me up. I heard you screaming and didn't know what to think, so I ran in." He looked closely at her and saw tears in her eyes.
-- Gillian, what is wrong? Please tell me, I want to help you. -- Suddenly Gillian found herself unable to speak. She just sat there, images from her nightmare still fresh in her mind, tears streaming down her face. Dylan moved closer and put his arms around her, and she instinctively nestled in, resting her head against his chest. It felt good just to be held like that. It felt good not to cry alone. She sobbed and his arm tightened around her. He rocked her like a child and she began to calm down. When she could speak again, she turned her face to him and asked:
"Do you really want to know?"
"Yes, I do."
And so she began to talk.
"I guess I have to tell you a bit about myself first. I grew up on T'hara 7, we moved to Maghira Drift when I was in my teens. My mother left my father and me when I was about six months old and we've never heard from her since. My dad is a surgeon, retired now and living on one of the Earth-like planets in Megara system with Mrs. Ratischer number seven. Or is it eight? I lost count sometime ago. His penchant for changing wives was the reason I left home. Don't get me wrong, I love my father, he was good parent and an inspiration for me to become a doctor, but his 'Ladies' are another story. So, after I graduated the University and worked for a while in my father's hospital I started to look elsewhere for a job. I found it on a small planet near Orion Prime. The people just suffered a number of brutal attacks by Drago-Katzov and any medical personnel were in high demand, so I packed up and moved there.
I was there for about six months when I met Tyr. Actually I found him, shot and beaten, half dead in an alley behind small bodega. I passed this alley every night on my way home. It was always crawling with all sorts of creatures and I tried to pass it as fast as I could. That night something made me stop. When I came closer I realized that that something was a sound of someone moaning. I always carry an emergency kit with me, so I took out the flashlight and went in to look. I saw a man lying in the pool of blood. When I got closer I saw that he was Nietzschean. Then I knew what transpired there. The people suffered so much from the Drago-Katzov Pride that the sight of a Nietzschean drove them to violence, even nice quiet people turned into a lynch mob. Apparently whoever did this thought that their victim was dead and left. When I approached him I saw that he was not only alive, but also conscious. He looked at me and growled:
"What, came to finish the job?"
"No, I want to help you."
"Why?"
" I am a doctor, that's what I do. I would help you even if you were Drago-Katzov, which you are not."
"How do you know I am not?"
"You are not wearing their Pride markings. Could we continue this discussion later? I'd like to get you out of here."
"How do you propose to do that? "
"Do you think you can get up if you lean on me?"
"Yes."
And so I helped him up and covered him with a blanket from my emergency kit. He was swaying on his feet and bleeding, but it was dark and we only had to go half the block to get to my apartment. For anyone who was not looking closely he appeared drunk. He leaned heavily on me but I managed to get him to my place without accident. I was off duty for the next thirty-six hours and hoped it would be enough time for him to recover and be on his way. After I cleaned and bandaged his wounds he looked at me and asked:
"So, why are you doing this?"
"I told you already, I am a doctor, that's what I do."
"And I am supposed to believe that."
"If I wanted you dead all I had to do was to leave you where you were. You would have bled to death in no time."
"And now?"
"And now I hope that you will recover quickly and be on your way before anyone notices that I have a houseguest with spurs on his forearms." He looked at me and asked:
"What is your name?"
"Why do you want to know?"
"I can't very well refer to my hostess 'Hey, you' or 'Kludge'."
"Call me Kludge and I will do you harm."
"So what is your name, Doctor?"
"Gillian Ratischer. And yours?"
"Tyr Anasazi of Kodiak Pride out of Victoria by Barbarossa."
"So, you are a Kodiak. Looks like you are in double jeopardy."
"Meaning?"
"Meaning that if you run into Dragos -- they'll kill you because you are Kodiak, and anyone else here will kill you simply because you are a Nietzschean. I have to figure out how to get you off this planet. Now I am going to make you something to eat and then I want you to go to sleep." He looked at me and raised his eyebrow:
"Your naiveté amazes me. Haven't you heard a story about the scorpion and the frog?"
"Yes, but it does not apply to our situation. First, you didn't ask me for help, I offered. Second, if you remember, the scorpion killed the frog mid-stream and drowned. Your survival instinct will not allow you to destroy your only chance."
"You are smart. For a … human."
"Go to sleep, Nietzschean." And this is how I came to know Tyr. His wounds were quite serious and it took him a long time to recover. He ended up staying at my place for almost a month. After a while I got used to him and even learned to enjoy his company. Finally he was ready to leave and we found a ship that was willing to take him, no questions asked. What we didn't know was that one of the crew on this ship was an informant and Tyr was discovered. The night he was supposed to leave I felt strange -- relieved and sad at the same time. I knew I was going to miss Tyr. When he was ready to go, he turned to me and said:
"I don't care much for humans. I don't care much for anyone for that matter. But I want you to know -- I do care about you. If you were Nietzschean, I would accept you as my sister. As to a human, I give you my loyalty. You have my word that if you ever need help I will help you."
I didn't expect any gratitude from him and was surprised to say the least. He reached and took my hand. I was about say something to him when my apartment doors burst open and in the matter of seconds Tyr and I were surrounded by soldiers. We fought them, he managed to get away, and I didn't. I was taken to prison, charged with treason, aiding enemy of the state and sentenced to die. All the time I spent in jail I was hoping that Tyr would come or would send someone and help me escape. He didn't. I thought he died, I couldn't believe his betrayal. Now I see that the scorpion did sting me. You want to know how I didn't die there? I have the Magog to thank for it. The city was attacked, the prison guard ran and I escaped. I jumped the first transport out of there, in the chaos ensued no one cared for papers, as long as you paid your way. So I got back to my father. He retired after a couple of years and I was running his hospital ever since. Until the Magog came and … well, you know the rest.
Gillian finished her story, got up and went over to the window. Dylan looked pensive. He knew Tyr was always looking out for himself, but he just couldn't comprehend his actions toward Gillian. After he saw how Tyr was with Harper he couldn't believe he would do something like that. But he didn’t know Tyr ten years ago.
"Why don't you ask him what happened?" Dylan suggested.
"I don't care. He ran and left me there knowing full well what my fate was to be. The only excuse for him could have been death. As far as I am concern he does not exist."
"Gillian… " she raised her hand to stop him.
"Dylan, please. I asked whether or not you wanted to know. You did. I will not stand between you and your crew. I will not make you part of my problem. As I said before, as soon as the opportunity allows, I will leave. I am becoming an expert on starting over, so I'll make a third attempt of leaving a normal life."
"Why can't you try it here? What Beka told you is true; I do want you to stay. The whole crew does."
"I don't know. It will be hard for me to be on the same ship with Tyr. I can only be civil for so long. The tension will affect the others, and I don't want to cause rifts among your people."
"Would you at least think about it?"
"OK. Now, you really should get some sleep. Thank you for staying with me." Dylan reluctantly got up and started to leave when Gillian came over to him, put her arms around his neck and lightly kissed him on the lips. "Thank you, Dylan. You are actually the first person I ever told this story to. Thank you for listening. Good night." She wanted to let go, but he held he tight and kissed her back, deeply. Dylan looked her in the eye and said:
"I don't want to push you into anything, especially not when you are this vulnerable…"
"If you knew me better you would know -- I am not easily pushed into anything I don't want to be pushed into."
"I would very much like to know you better. " Instead of answering him, Gillian kissed him again. Moments later he broke the kiss and looked at her, smiling:
"You know, I think I've fallen for you the first moment I saw you."
"I think I am falling for you too, my Captain." She answered and pulled him down on the bed. They made love until wee hours of the morning and after Dylan held Gillian close, unwilling to let her go, loathing to break the connection. He started to leave when he thought she had fallen asleep, but she opened her eyes and smiled:
"You have to go, it won't be good if you are found here."
"Are you ashamed of what we did?"
"Never! I just think it is a bit early to make it public knowledge." Dylan agreed and left. She quietly closed the door behind him and went back to bed. She was right, she was falling for Captain Hunt. It was not good. She couldn't afford to create attachments she would have to break later
For the next couple of days Gillian spent time with Trance in Medical or Beka in the gym. She saw Dylan at the meals but tried to avoid any one-on-one interactions. He understood and decided to give her time before approaching the subject of the future of their relationship. Harper was trying really hard to smooth things over with Gillian over his earlier goof-off, so he spent most of his off-duty time on the Pegasus, fixing the ship up. Gillian actually liked the engineer a lot and made sure to let him know it.
Andromeda was near Andalla colony, the home of one of Gillian's colleagues killed in the attack on the clinic. She decided to go and see his family and asked Harper to come with her; so he could test the repairs he made to Pegasus and also she wanted someone there with her for moral support. She went to see Dylan about it. When she walked into his office she saw him discussing something with Tyr. She immediately turned back intending to come back later when Dylan called after her:
"Gillian! Was there anything you needed?"
"It can wait."
"Why wait when we can talk about it now?" Doing her best to ignore Tyr she turned to Dylan:
"I was just going to ask if it was OK with you if Harper came with me to the Andalla."
"Sure, he is off-duty for the next twelve hours. Is that enough time for you?"
"More than enough. Thank you, Dylan."
"I think I should accompany Harper and Doctor Ratischer to Andalla." Gillian heard Tyr's voice and turned around:
"I do not think it is necessary, Mr. Anasazi."
"Oh, I think it is very necessary. The colony is not a safe place to be."
"I can take care of myself."
"I know that. After all I did teach you how."
"And I am forever grateful, Mr. Anasazi. However your help is not required this or any other time. Good day."
"You may be able to take care of yourself, but Mr. Harper is notorious in his ability to get in trouble. And I doubt you can handle everything on your own. I will meet you on the Pegasus in two hours. Good day." And with that he left, leaving Dylan puzzled ad Gillian fuming. She turned to Hunt and started to say something when he raised a hand:
"What harm could come from extra security? The place is really not that safe and Harper really has a talent to find trouble. Tyr will not be in your way. And I feel better knowing he is there to protect you. If I were not tied up here on Andromeda I would have come with you myself. "
"Dylan, after all I've told you, you want me to go anywhere with him?"
" You said it yourself, I'm the only one who knows. Do you really want to explain to everyone what, why and how? Everyone is already questioning the tension between you two." Seeing that she can't win this argument Gillian grudgingly agreed.
Upon their arrival Gillian went on to see he friend's family. She made arrangements to meet with Harper at the local bar in a few hours and did her best to ignore Tyr. The time Gillian had spent with the people she came here to see left her emotionally drained. She walked into the bar, located Harper and sat down next to him. Tyr was nowhere around and she was glad. Harper looked at her with sympathy:
"That bad, huh?"
"How do you think? I had to tell elderly parents that their only son died. And then they wanted to know how. And why I couldn't help him. They made me feel like I actually killed him, not the Magog."
"Take it easy, you know how people get. I am sure they know it was not your fault."
"Honestly -- let them think whatever makes them feel better. If blaming me does the trick -- so be it. Right now, I need a drink. " She started to get up, but Harper put his hand on her shoulder:
"I'll get it. What do you want?"
"Something simple. Gin and tonic will do."
"OK, coming right up! " With that Harper got up and made his way to the bar. The bartender took his time getting the drinks and when Harper got back to the table he saw that Gillian had company. Company she did not like. Two drunks parked themselves on both her sides and were oblivious to all her attempts to make them leave. When they saw Harper, one of them, big, bald, and heavily tattooed, shoved him hard and growled:
"Get out, squirt!" Gillian got up and turned to the Baldy:
"Now, if you are trying to impress me, that's not how you do it. You don't push my friends around." The other thug tried to grab her hand and pull her back down, but she flipped her wrist and slammed his arm into a table; and suddenly he howled in pain and Harper heard a 'snap!' of a broken bone. Gillian looked him in the face and hissed: " I think I already explained to you -- I am not interested. " Baldy pushed Harper further away and turned around. He advanced on Gillian and tried to grab her, but she kneed him in the groin and then, after he doubled over in pain, took him by the scruff of his neck and brought her knee into his face, breaking his nose. Shoving him away she ran over to Harper:
"Seamus, are you ok?"
"Fine, you?"
"Just peachy. Where is this overgrown Nietzschean mountain of muscles when you need him?"
"So you admit you do need me?" Gillian raised her head and saw Tyr standing few yards away. She was about to say something venomous to him when Harper yelled: "Gun! Gillian, get down!" And than everything happened so fast she had no time to react. She saw the thug with a broken arm aim a gun at her, she saw Tyr turning and leaping toward her and Harper. She pushed Harper further away, felt Tyr's body on hers, a live barrier between her and the gun. She felt it suddenly jerk, once, than again, and go limp on top of her. She also felt something hot graze her upper arm but paid it no heed. For a moment everything went absolutely quiet and than all hell broke loose. Security guards ran in and grabbed the thugs; people scattered in all directions, but all Gillian cared about was to get Tyr to Pegasus and than to Andromeda as soon as possible. She commandeered two guards to help her bring Tyr aboard. He was unconscious, his wounds were severe but he was alive and Gillian intended to keep him that way. Gillian turned to Harper:
"Seamus, get us out of here. His life depends on your flying. Also, get in touch with Trance and tell her to prepare Medical, he'll need surgery."
"Yes, Doc."
Onward To Part 2!
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