Colony One (25 page)

“Deal,” Ndale said as he stood. John nodded once, and with that turned to melt back into the clutch of outsiders. They were in their Runners and speeding into the distance in remarkable time.

Alexa let out a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. Beside her, Patrick’s shoulders slumped and she realized the man had been using all the energy he had left to maintain his appearance of strength. “Come on,” she told him. “You need water, food and a bunk – stat.” She pulled his arm over her shoulder without protest and helped him walk up the ramp and into the safety of Colony One. Alexa straightened defiantly as they walked passed a bitter looking Marcus.

She reflected on the near-disaster they had just narrowly avoided and with increasing incredulity, she realized that she was steadily becoming one of Ndale’s biggest fans.

24

Day 17 on Colony Alpha, Water Expedition

“What is it about ‘no’ that you don’t understand?” Ndale asked after rubbing his face. He held his hands out in way of a pleading gesture.

“What is it about ‘major scientific discovery’ don’t
you
understand?” Jia asked with crossed arms. She was standing in the threshold of the Captain’s quarters and was resolved not to move until she had her way. News of the mission to verify Colony Three’s water source had made its way through the ship, and eventually to her. She went to Ndale immediately to demand that she be assigned to the mission. Learning about life beyond Earth was something she dedicated a large part of her life to. Even given the circumstances of their placement on Colony Alpha, the opportunity to explore the conditions of the planet woke something up inside of her that she thought she had lost forever.

Ndale crossed the gap between them and cupped her arms with his hands, “Jia, we cannot possibly risk losing you if something went wrong – or their intentions turn out to be false. You’re the only one who has any hope of restoring power to this ship.”

Jia met his gaze with a kind of fire in her eyes the man had never before witnessed, “I have been through my fair share of hardship in my life. I can handle a day trip to an underground spring.”

Ndale sighed and threw his hands in the air before turning to pace away from her. He was not used to having to negotiate, or listen to people in general. It was exhausting. “Fine!” he finally exclaimed. He turned and pointed at her, “But I’m sending Demetri with you and you better not even
think
of leaving his side.”

A large smile overtook Jia’s face – in a way she hadn’t experience in a long time. She uncrossed her arms and embraced Ndale in a tight hug. “I’ll pack some things!” She said in a hurry and nearly skipped out of the compartment.

Ndale watched her go in stunned silence. He was sure the Jia he had just seen was not the same he had traveled with for nine months.

Alexa and Demetri sat with Jia at the base of the ramp, waiting for their pickup. There was a rosy color to Jia’s cheeks and a constant half-smile tugging at her lips. Alexa and Demetri shared looks when they noticed and could do nothing but shrug. They both knew water was a big deal – but no one was more excited than the former scientist. As they waited, Alexa checked her bag and the medical supplies in it again. Ndale had asked her to join the others for two reasons; one – she had already achieved some level of peace between they and the Colony Three survivors, and two – because she could offer her medical services as an added incentive to cooperate. She wasn’t thrilled about being outnumbered in a former enemy’s camp, but she was hoping Ndale’s message about neither side being in fighting shape hit home with the others.

The distinct sound of Bob’s sandals flopping on the decking of the ramp sounded behind the trio and they all turned to look up at the Monk. He smiled at them in a comforting way and waved two plastic containers at them, “Greetings.”

“What’s up, Bob?” Demetri asked.

“I was hoping you’d be so kind as to bring back some samples – if they’ll allow it, of course.”

“Way ahead of you, Bob,” Jia grinned and pulled back the flap on her messenger bag. It was lined with similar plastic containers.

“She’s prepared,” Alexa commented. Bob circled to stand on the rocky ground, his back to the sun. She squinted up at him and asked, “Any luck recruiting plumbers?”

Bob nodded, “Some. One of Marcus’ son’s is a hobbyist that likes to put things together. He’s also been able to get into small places to dismantle what I hope are non-essential parts of the ship,” he smiled and tilted his head from side to side, laughing at his own joke.

Alexa laughed and put her chin in her hand, feeling a genuine smile linger. Things were actually starting to look up and it both excited and terrified her. She had not been born a pessimist, but a hard life made her wary of having nice things that could be taken away at any moment.

At the sound of a lone, distant Runner, the three stood and dusted themselves off. Bob turned and put a hand over his brow to block the duel suns from his eyes.

“Curb side service,” Demetri commented.

“Right on time,” Alexa observed.

They watched as the Runner grew as it got closer. The pilot ran the small craft at full throttle until just a few dozen meters out. All four colonists took tiny half steps backward, worried the craft would not have enough space to stop without crashing into the ramp they stood on.

Amazingly, the Runner came to a halt mere meters away from Colony One. The bubbled windscreen popped open and a young woman stood to greet them with a wide smile, “Hi. I’m Maria. I’ll be your driver this afternoon. Hop in!”

The trio departing all shared looks of trepidation.

“How old are you?” Demetri asked.

“Why does everyone keep asking me that?” Maria wondered.

“Come on,” Alexa shook her head and trudged forward. “We’ve made it this far, haven’t we?”

“Yea, and I’d like to make it a little farther.” Demetri countered, but followed her lead.

Jia pulled the strap of her bag over her shoulder, turned to face Bob, patted the bag and winked. He smiled at her and waved a goodbye as the climbed into the back of the Runner. It peeled away just as quickly as it arrived. He watched them disappear into the distance and said made a silent appeal to the universe to keep them safe.

“You know, if you slowed down, you would conserve more fuel,” Jia yelled over the noise of the Runner’s engines and the wind generated by speeding across the landscape.

“Really?” Maria asked and the three Colony One passengers felt the craft slow somewhat.

“Really.” Jia confirmed and sat back on the bench seating from where she’d stood to yell the information over Maria’s shoulder.

Demetri’s grip on the bench lessened somewhat and he mouthed a ‘THANK YOU’ to Jia.

“So, where’s everyone from?” Maria asked in a cheerful way.

The trio exchanged glances.

“New America. North-Eastern quadrant,” Alexa answered.

“China,” Jia put in.

“South-East Quadrant - New America,” Demetri said last. “What about you?”

“Hey! Not too far from me! Central Quadrant. Latinos represent!” She reached her hand back and after a pause of indecision, Demetri slapped it in solidarity.

“How old are you again?”

She sighed, “17. I think. Like I told the other guy, we haven’t exactly worked out a calendar yet.”

“Where are your parents?” Alexa wondered.

The question made the girl go silent.

After a moment, Alexa spoke again with a softer tone, “I’m sorry.”

Maria shrugged, “They’d be pretty proud if they knew what an awesome pilot I am.”

“I bet.”

The Runner approached the tall petrified tree structure and Jia almost climbed into the empty co-pilot’s seat to get a better look. “Fascinating,” she whispered as they came closer.

“It’s home,” Maria commented as she maneuvered the Runner to land.

John was waiting for them with a small group. Once they were all out of the Runner, Alexa was the first to speak. “I don’t think we got to introduce ourselves earlier. I’m Alexa. This is Demetri and Jia.”

John nodded, “You know who I am. This is Dean,” he gestured to a man with scar tissue running up the entire length of his right arm. He carried a giant plastic bucket. “He’ll be taking you to the springs.” He turned to gesture to the woman on his other side. “This is Savi, she’s my second.” The woman with short, choppy hair bowed her head slightly in way of greeting.

Alexa nodded back, “I’m a medic. Ndale has asked me to offer my services to you while we’re here, if they’re needed.”

Savi’s eyes lit up at the news and looked to John. John nodded in response. “We would appreciate that very much,” Savi said. “Dean will take care of the others. Can you come with me?”

Alexa glanced at Jia and Demetri, who both nodded back to her. She put on a professional smile, “Lead the way.”

Dean sized up the remaining pair, “It is a bit of a climb. You two up for it?” he asked in a gruff voice.

“I was born for this,” Jia said with no irony in her tone. Demetri smiled as the others looked vaguely perplexed. Jia was already walking to the nearest petrified tree, “These are incredible. They have to be eons old to be in this state. And still standing! Do any of you understand how remarkable that is?”

The others stared blankly at her.

“Right,” she ran her hand awkwardly over the stone tree. “Well we should probably get going then.”

“Yeah,” Dean agreed, “This way.”

ɸ ɸ ɸ

Savi had led Alexa to a container that had been combined with another to form one of the largest structures in the camp. Inside, makeshift beds had been constructed using smaller crates and scraps of cloth. Windows had been cut in the container to let in light, and vents had been installed in the roof. Neither was enough to vent the smell of infection and sickness, however. As soon as Alexa rounded the corner to enter the makeshift field hospital, the smell hit her and sent her reeling back to her time on Earth in similar makeshift medical units.

She resisted the urge to cover her mouth and nose, following Savi as she led her to a bed in one of the far corners.

“This is Rashida,” Savi said and paused, then added, “My wife.”

Alexa nodded and moved to the woman’s bedside. Her ebony black skin was slick with sweat and her eyelids fluttered as she tried to look up at the newcomer. “What happened?”

Savi leaned down and carefully pulled the blanket away to show Alexa the woman’s arm – wrapped in a bloody bandage and clearly broken, “A group of us were moving a container. She slipped and it landed here,” she gestured to the break. “We don’t have any medicine. We did our best to set it…” She trailed off, feeling her chest tighten with worry for her loved one.

Alexa took the blanket from Savi and pulled it down to the woman’s legs. She put a hand on Savi’s shoulder and forced her to make eye contact, “I can help. But I’m going to need a few things from you. Clean water. More light.” She paused before adding, “And your help to hold her down when I reset this bone.”

Savi nodded and left at once. Alexa was quick to pull fresh gauze from her back – something they had in abundant quantities on Colony One. She regretted that she did not have any medical-grade painkiller because she knew what she was about to do was going to hurt like hell.

While she waited for Savi to return, Alexa scanned the rest of the container. Most beds were empty – and for the ones that weren’t, the prognosis did not look good. Infection was the biggest danger in societies that didn’t have antibiotics – and the container reeked of it. She had brought what was left of her whiskey as an antiseptic, but she would only use it on patients who weren’t too far gone.

She brought herself back to the task at hand, kneeling next to the woman and unraveling the bloody bandage. As she did, Rashida stirred and whimpered. Alexa reached up and put a hand to her forehead. It was warm, but not burning hot. She felt better knowing the infection may not have spread.

“How long ago did this happen?” She asked Savi when she returned.

“Not long,” the woman answered. “A day and a half ago.”

“Good,” Alexa nodded and dropped the remains of the bloody bandage to the floor. She directed Savi to shine the light on the wound and examined it the best she could. It was clear that bone had broken through the skin, and the attempt to reset it had made the wound worse.

She cleaned what she could and probed the outside of her arm to determine where the break was still the worst.

“It’s time,” she told Savi when she was done with her evaluation. The woman looked paler than she had when they met, but nonetheless moved to the head of Rashida’s bed to hold her shoulders down. “I know it’s difficult, but push down as hard as you can as soon as I set it.”

Savi nodded. Alexa took the woman’s arm in a vice grip and set the bone in one, quick motion.

Rashida’s body arched and her eyes flashed open as she screamed involuntarily.

“Shh, shh,” Savi leaned down as she held her, kissing the woman’s forehead. “It’s okay. It’s okay.” She repeated as Alexa poured whiskey over the wound, eliciting a hiss but not a scream. “She’s a doctor.”

“A medic, technically,” Alexa said in a procedural way. She was focused – which meant she was detached emotionally by necessity. She re-wrapped the wound and let Savi reassure her wife as she cleaned up the mess she had made.

“It would be better if we had antibiotics,” Alexa was telling Savi after Rashida was settled again. “But the infection doesn’t seem as bad as it could be. With her arm set and fresh bandages on a regular basis, she has a good chance.”

“Can you come back to check on her?” Savi wanted to know.

Alexa let out a breath, “With any hope, you, her, and the others can join us where I can keep a very close eye on her.” She offered with a reassuring smile. She didn’t miss being in the field, but she had missed using her abilities to help people.