Part 14 (1/2)

”You were right,” he told Dave. ”If I could just get a look inside I might have a better idea what's going on. The ultrasound machines are portable. h.e.l.l, some of them are even set up to run on battery packs.”

”And...you know how to use one?” Dave asked without trying to sound too condescending.

”We covered them a little in med school. I think I know just enough to be dangerous,” Wilson said with a smirk.

He darted from the room and Dave noticed Ann and Emily standing in the doorway.

”Hey,” Ann said. ”She wanted to see how he's doing.”

”C'mere child, it's okay,” Minnie said.

Emily walked over and stood next to her. She stared at Howard but said nothing.

”All right, here we go!” Wilson came back into the room pus.h.i.+ng a portable ultrasound machine. ”Let's fire this bad boy up and see what we can see.”

22.

Dr. Wilson squirted a healthy amount of gel on the ultrasound wand and spread it around on Howard's abdomen. He groaned when the wand made contact and Wilson eased up on the pressure a little.

Dave, Minnie, Emily, and Ann stood on the other side of the bed, watching the fuzzy image on the screen. Wilson was secretly relieved he figured out how to get the machine going. Once the screen came to life, he was starting to feel more confident. He doubted he'd find anything significant, but at least the group would know he tried his best.

Wilson slowly dragged the transducer across the skin, looking for anything out of the ordinary.

”That army guy outside was asking what we were planning on doing,” Ann said quietly to Dave.

”What do you mean? Planning on what?”

”I don't know. Like, if we're going to stay here with everybody else or what?”

”Oh,” Dave muttered. ”Where else are we gonna go? Besides, it all depends on what happens with Howard.”

”Whoa!” Wilson shouted. The wand slipped out of his hand and hit the floor. He looked at the group with wide eyes. ”Did you guys see that?”

”See what?” Minnie asked.

Wilson bent over and picked up the wand. ”I dunno. Just...hold on a sec.”

He put a little more gel on the end of the wand and placed it back at the same spot.

”It was right...right around...here.” The image came into view and Wilson pulled the wand away. ”Holy s.h.i.+t,” he whispered.

”What in the h.e.l.l was that?” Ann asked.

”Put it back,” Dave said.

Everybody leaned forward, getting as close to the small monochrome display as possible. Wilson once again pressed the transducer against Howard's skin. He moaned in pain. The image came into focus. Emily screamed. Minnie put her hand to her mouth and took a step back. Wilson simply shook his head, unable to comprehend what it was he was looking at.

”Are those?” Dave asked. ”Are those what I think they are?”

”Yeah, it...” Wilson said. ”They look to me like...”

He moved the wand around, bringing into focus each individual orb among the dozens on the screen. In each perfectly round sack, a tiny creature, not unlike a tadpole, wiggled around and danced in its tiny womb.

He cleared his throat. ”They look to me like eggs.”

Part Three - Redemption.

Prologue.

Senior Medical Officer Maylew inspected his patient's wounded foot. Despite the thirty a.r.s.ects injection of Pfilison, Junior Crew Enlistman Furlon still wailed in pain. The very potent pain r.e.t.a.r.dant seemed to have no effect.

”Come now, Furlon. You carrying on only makes my job more difficult. Please try to remain calm.” Maylew sprayed disinfectant into the wound causing Furlon to howl even louder.

Senior Crew Enlistman Lanmer appeared in the medical bay doorway. Furlon fell silent at the sight of his superior. ”What is it now?” Lanmer said. ”Why is it every time I lay my head to rest some problem occurs?” He turned his gaze to Furlon's b.l.o.o.d.y foot. Besides a significant gash, the normal gray skin of the foot had grown to a darker, almost green, tint from cell damage. ”What in h.e.l.lfire happened to him?”

”It was Specimen Six, Mr. Lanmer.” The pain r.e.t.a.r.dant slowly became more effective but Furlon still winced as the doctor began to close the gash in his foot with sutures. Furlon tried his hardest to mask the pain in front of Senior Crew Enlistman Lanmer. Mr. Lanmer thought pain to be a sign of weakness and made no effort to hide his disgust when one of his crewmen showed any signs of discomfort. ”I merely pa.s.sed through the laboratory and it lashed out at me.”

”Did I not inform the entire crew to keep at least six fills from its cell?”

”I swear I was at least twice that, Mr. Lanmer. The reach of that beast is deceptive. I fear nowhere in the hold is safe from its attacks.”

Lanmer ignored him, all too familiar with Furlon's tendency for exaggeration. ”How will this affect his mobility, Mr. Maylew?”

Senior Medical Officer Maylew finished the last st.i.tch on Furlon's foot and removed his gloves. ”I recommend he spends the rest of the cycle in his bunk. The Pfilison will affect his judgment and cause drowsiness. He should feel significantly better next cycle.”

”Curses!” Lanmer tipped over a tray of Maylew's instruments. Both the medical officer and young enlistman were taken aback by Lanmer's sudden outburst. He was gruff by nature and often lost his temper due to impatience, but neither man had ever seen him lash out in a physical way before.

”Curses to this mission and curses to this blasted vessel,” he roared. ”Capturing that beast was the last straw. Look at what the captain's blatant disregard for the law has gotten us. Furlon could easily have been killed. Am I not right, Mr. Maylew?”

Senior Medical Officer Maylew cleared his throat and lowered his gaze to the deck.

”Answer the enlistman, Maylew.”

The deep voice resonated from the pa.s.sageway behind Lanmer, who remained silent and straightened his spine to attention. The action was pure muscle memory, a subconscious decision due to many yarwens of military conditioning.

Captain Sekwee strolled into the quiet medical bay. His heavy bootsteps sounded like hammers in the small room. ”Our young enlistman Furlon could have been killed by our new guest. That much is obvious, judging by the nasty wound in his foot.” The captain made a soft hissing sound with his mouth.

Maylew knew Captain Sekwee well enough to know he wasn't looking for his input at all. He remained silent.

”Senior Crew Enlistman Lanmer,” the captain said. ”Do I sense some frustration with our mission?”

The captain's large black eyes bored into Lanmer and he resisted the strong urge to look away. Born of Drillian descent, the captain's facial features were imposing and aggressive, even when he was calm. It was a natural advantage for a Federate commanding officer.