PART III – …GOES AROUND

“BP 90 over 88…”

I felt cold. There was nothing in the training manuals about feeling cold when exposed to the vacuum of space. Did the books lie?

“Pulse bradycardic…50…55…I’m starting to get adequate profusion. Nurse Doll Face load me up 15cc’s of counter-solution,” I heard Doc say.

My vision began to clear, and my body felt like it was being stung by a thousand needles. I attempt to say something but my mouth refused to move.

“We got alpha brainwave activity, Doc,” I heard Doll Face say in her soft voice.

A hand touched my shoulder. From the size, I could tell who it was.

“Welcome back to the land of the living, Angela,” Lilith said.

“It’s…Commander Scar,” I squeaked out.

Her warm hand rubbed my shoulder gently.

“Good, save that fire in your belly,” Lilith said. “That so-called Prince of Thieves betrayed us to the USN. He told them that we were on Outpost Hel celebrating, and even had the nerve to promise the crew Rescue 1 if they agreed to mutiny.”

“Yeah, not all of us agreed,” Doc immediately said.

“Once we took back Rescue 1, we returned for you and the captain,” Fenris said in his gruff voice.

“Your…suicide?” I asked.

It still felt as if I had a thousand ice shards poking me in the chest. I wanted to reach up and hold her hand, but my fingers still refused to obey me.

“Oh, that was the easy part, Scar,” Lilith said. “I faked my suicide by making it look like I strangled myself with the bed sheets and slowed down my vitals.”

The blurry features of everyone’s faces began to sharpen. Lilith’s almond shaped eyes were the first thing my eyes focused on. She was staring back at me with a hint of a smile. Leaning over Lilith kissed my forehead with her soft lips.

She began to play with a lock of her hair and said, “After I snapped out of my death trance some old preacher guy was giving me my last rights or something. You should have seen the look on his assistant’s face when I sat up. He hit the floor and everything.”

I examined my hands and arms. My entire body was coated in a thin layer of crystal-like material.

Lilith held on to my hand and snickered. The other members of the crew reached over and rubbed my shoulder before walking out of the cabin. I closed my grip around my hand as crystals flaked off.

“The government issued equipment that actually works, that’s a first,” I said. “But why did the preacher-man slip me that Lif-stend?”

“No idea,” she answered with a slight giggle. “I think that old geezer was rambling on about his family and Stefvann VIII, but you know how I just glaze over when people are going bla…bla…bla life story this and that.”

As my strength began to return, I squeezed her hand. That was the best I could manage. She caressed my face with her hand and traced her finger over my scar.

“Rest up, battle buddy,” she whispered in my ear. “Everyone thinks we’re dead. That Prince is in for a hell of a shock when we show back up and make him walk the plank.”

“Thank you,” I said closing my heavy eyelids.

“I made a promise to never abandon you, and when you face Death again,” she said. “We will do it together.”

“Yo ho ho,” I said before falling asleep.