From: megazone@obsidian.WPI.EDU (MegaZone23)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.anime,alt.prose,wpi.students.story
Subject: OIC (10)
Date: 10 Sep 1992 14:34:57 GMT
Organization: Worcester Polytechnic Institute
NNTP-Posting-Host: obsidian.wpi.edu

----------------------------------------------------------TEN

     "Don't fear the reaper."
                         --Blue Oyster Cult

     "Ben!  I'm afraid that Zoner's condition has taken a
turn for the worse," Eve called from the bridge comm system.
     "What?  What now?"
     "His vital signs are dropping rapidly.  At the present
rate he won't make it back to the shipyards."
     "How long does he have?"
     Eve glanced away.  "I estimate fifteen minutes," she
said quietly.  "Maybe twenty, but..."
     "Rob?"
     Rob shook his head slowly.  "At least an hour.  If I
push her any harder she'll blow."
     Gryphon had no reply.  He just sat there, looking at
nothing.  A minute dragged by.
     "Gryph?" asked Rob.
     "You have the conn," Gryphon whispered, his voice barely
audible.  He got up and ran from the bridge.

     In sickbay Jenna and Yuri redoubled their efforts. In
his mind Zoner could feel their pull.  He wanted badly to
return to them, to Yuri, but they seemed to be so far away,
too far.  He had been fighting forever, running through the
labyrinth of his mind.  Opening the doors to his memories,
hoping that one would lead him back to the land of the
waking.  How long had he been unconscious, it seemed like
years.  He had no way to keep track of time.  Tired, he was
so tired.  Maybe if he rested for a little while he would be
able to start fresh.  Yeah, rest.  Just a little, stop
fighting for a while.  I'm sure it wouldn't hurt.  In his
mind he stopped running, lay down and closed his eyes.
     The monitors in sickbay flatlined.
     "ZONER!" Yuri screamed. "NO!  YOU CAN'T DIE!"
     Oh no, thought Kei.  Oh fucking no.  She hadn't been
very close to Zoner, not nearly as close as Yuri was to
Gryphon, but that had a lot to do with the fact that she and
Zoner were in many respect quite similar people, and thus
didn't get along sometimes.  Neither opened up easily, and
both were given to mistrust.  Seeing so much of herself in
him had given him some special significance, and they had
been friends.  Pain welled up inside her, but she slammed it
back down and closed a heavy steel hatch over it.  Now was
not the time; she was needed.  She could cry later.  If she
could even cry at all.  She hadn't tried lately.
     Jenna jumped into action, adjusting the life support
system.  All of this technology, and she still felt helpless.
     Yuri began sobbing and calling out to Zoner repeatedly.
Kei gathered her up and carried her sobbing form to a chair
in the corner.  All of the worry and pain which had built up
in Yuri for the preceding weeks poured out as sobs wracked
her body.  Kei hugged Yuri to her and tried to ease her pain
as she watch Jenna desperately trying to save Zoner.

     Zoner stood up, he felt refreshed and energetic. That
nap had really helped.  But something seemed different, the
pain that had been in the background for so long was gone.
He realized then that he wasn't alone.
     He turned to face his companion; he knew who she was.
She was stunningly beautiful, dressed in a halter and slacks
- all black, with a silver ankh hanging around her neck.
     "How do you do Teleute?  I've been waiting for a chance
to meet you," Zoner said in greeting.
     "I'm doing ok, Zoner, my job sort of keeps me busy."
     "I can imagine, it must get tiring.  Do you have time to
talk for a bit?  I've been interested in you for a while.
You're very intriguing."
     Death thought it over for a moment.  "I suppose so,
let's go for a walk."
     With a gesture of her hand they were in a park in the
spring.  They strolled along the path and chatted with each
other.

     "It's no use.  I can't bring him back," Jenna called out
from her position at Zoner's side.
     "NO!" Yuri cried out in anguish.
     "Shhhh!!  Yuri, I'm so sorry..." Kei whispered. She
didn't know what to say.  She had never seen Yuri this torn
up, not even when Billy died.
     "Jenna, may I make a suggestion?" Eve inquired from the
comm screen.
     "Anything if it will help save him."
     "Put him in a chill down unit, the ones used for severe
trauma cases."
     "Why?"
     "It will give him more time before brain damage sets in.
Maybe Lord Fahrvergnugen can do something in that time."
     "I understand.  Thank you, Eve."  Jenna entered the
commands to transfer Zoner's body to a chill down unit.  The
cold would slow the onset of organ damage, stretching the
normal five minutes to an hour or more.  It took but a few
moments for sickbay to complete the transfer.
     "Bridge, this is Jenna.  How long until we reach
Planitia?"
     "Umm, like just under an hour," q replied. "How's Zoner
doing?"
     "I... I couldn't save him I'm afraid.  But there is
still a chance.  I've chilled the body down.  If we can get
him to the shipyards soon maybe they can do something.  But
an hour is cutting it close."
     "Where's Ben?" Kei asked, noticing his absence.
     "Like, I don't know.  When we got the news about Zoner
he gave the conn to ReRob and ran off.  Sorry."
     "It's ok, I can understand how he feels."
     Kei wanted so much to be with Ben, but she couldn't
leave Yuri.  She hoped that Ben would understand.
     "Right now our main concern is getting Zoner to Utopia
Planitia ASAP.  What do we have that's fast and can carry the
chill down unit?" Jenna asked.
     "Not much, I'm not sure if it will fit in a Beta.  I
think our best bet is the Daytona from Hell and its beta.  It
should fit in there no problem, and that thing can do warp.
I say we try it," ReRob answered.
     "Ben said not to touch it..." Kei interjected.
     "I think he'll understand us using it in this case, he
didn't want it used until Zoner woke up.  But if we don't use
it that may not ha---," Jenna caught herself as Yuri's sobs
increased in intensity.  "I'm sorry Yuri, I didn't mean to
hurt you.  I'm sure Wolfgang will be able to do something,"
she added, but even she remained unconvinced.  "Ok, ReRob.
Have the Daytona prepped and ready ASAP.  And get some people
down here to help move the chill down unit."
     "Will do.  Who's going to fly it?"
     "I will," Kei called out from the corner.  "And Yuri is
going too."
     "Fine, you know what you're doing.  Jenna's going along
too, right?  Anyone else?"
     "I'm going to try and find Ben.  How long until the
Daytona is ready?" Kei asked.
     "Give me about ten minutes."
     "Ok, I'll be in the bay in ten minutes, with or without
him."  Then, to Yuri, "Are you going to be ok?"  After
receiving a nod in reply Kei ran from sickbay to find Ben.

     Find him she did; he was standing in the upper
observation deck, leaning slackly against the thick armor
glass, his face pressed to the cool surface, looking out of
the corner of his eye at the stars.
     "Ben?" she asked.  "Are you all right?"
     "He died, didn't he?" Ben replied, his voice empty.
"The bastard went and died.  Didn't he?!"  The last was an
intense, ringing, almost accusatory shout.
     "Yes," Kei replied.  "He died."
     For a long moment Gryphon was silent.  Then, as the
muscles in his arms and back knotted, he began to quiver
silently.  His lips peeled back from clenched teeth; with a
scream of primal rage, he whirled around and slammed his fist
with all his strength into the glass.  "BASTARD!"
     Nothing happened, of course, because the glass was
molecularly aligned crystalline armor.  Apart from a dull
thud and the echo of his scream, there was no real effect.
Snarling with rage, he drew back his arm and hit it again.
And again.
     "Son of a bitch," he snarled, smashing his hand into the
glass.  "Son of a bitch."  He began chanting it, like a
mantra, his voice rising.  There was nothing in the room for
him to break but himself; it would have to do.  He drew back
his arm to deliver another punch.
     "Ben, stop it!" Kei shouted, at him, grabbing his arm
and wrenching him around to face her.  "You're going to smash
your hand.  Stop it!"
     "Leave me alone!" he cried, trying to push her away.
"Just leave me alone."
     "No," she replied, throwing her arms around her and
pulling him close.  "Listen to me.  I need you.  Yuri needs
you.  Do you understand?"
     "I..."  He slumped in her arms, the sudden rage draining
away as fast as it had filled him.  "I'm sorry...I just can't
believe it.  After all the son of a bitch put us through...he
goes and dies."  He laughed bitterly through the tears that
ran down his face.  "You know, he went into that coma on
Yuri's birthday.  How pleasant."  He shook his head weakly.
"Son of a bitch."
     "Stop it," Kei said firmly.  "There may still be a
chance.  Jenna has him in a chill unit; there may be time to
get him to the shipyards if we use his Daytona.  Maybe
there's something Wolfgang can do.  I volunteered to fly it
myself...but I can't think of anyone he'd rather have flying
it than you."
     There was a long pause.  Gryphon drew in a deep,
shuddering breath and let it out as a long, exhausted sigh.
He raised his arms, putting them around Kei, and hugged her
tight.  Then:
     "Okay.  Let's go."

     The Daytona from Hell, Beta unit attached, blasted out
of Cargo Hold Eighteen with Gryphon at its controls and Kei
riding shotgun as copilot.  In back, Yuri and Jenna watched
over the chill unit and each other as the pilots of the
Eight-Ball Squadron stood as a combination honor guard and
moving crew.
     Gryphon thumbed the side of the throttle and pushed it
forward; the Beta's warp drive flared, and they were
superluminal.  His eyes were narrow and clear as they watched
the starfield warp and flicked over the instruments; his
hands on steering wheel and throttle were white-knuckled.
The muscles in the corners of his mouth and eyes twitched.
Kei put a soothing hand on his, feeling it quiver.
     In four minutes, they dropped back out of warp and
docked with the shipyard control unit; not a single word had
been said onboard the entire time.
     As they disembarked and a medical crew from the shipyard
unloaded the chill chamber, Lord Fahrvergnugen and his
entourage entered the docking bay.  The medical crew quickly
moved Zoner down the hallway, apparently towards the
infirmary.  With them was a tall, thin man no one recognized;
late twenties, clear blue eyes behind round spectacles,
disorganized and pale brown hair, and somewhat archaic dress.
     "Welcome back, my children," said Lord Wolfgang Amadeus
Fahrvergnugen.  "Allow me to introduce you to a friend of
mine.  Commander Benjamin D. Hutchins and company, I present
you Mr. Edison Bell, Esquire."