symptoms.”
“Symptoms? What are they?” Franklin’s voice cracked when he spoke. For the duration of her story, he found himself unable to focus on anything else. He wanted to listen to her talk because her emotions swelled his heart and made it weep.
She took a deep breath and pursed her lips in thought. “You will see for yourself before too long. The disease is on our home world.”
He sat watching her for a moment , but when he opened his mouth to ask her another question he was surrounded by the familiar whiteness. Franklin looked around in shock as his gaze settled on the lone figure standing not more than ten feet away looking out into the white space surrounding them.
“Why?” Franklin’s memories were restored and the new images combined with the old ones to form a history of an Empire he feared no longer existed.
“That was our home world, Mekah.”
“Why?” Franklin clenched his hands into fists as his anger began to rise to dangerous levels.
“A short time ago , that woman died. She died after witnessing our people grow sick and die. Those worlds that avoided becoming sick attacked those that were with weapons beyond your ability to understand… but nothing could stop the disease except the expanse between this world and the others.”
“Why ? Damn you! Why did you show me this?” Franklin was livid. His life was enough trouble before the weight of the universe was placed on his shoulders.
Tanok moved for the first time to look at Franklin. “You needed to see for yourself why you need to help.”
With everything he ’d experienced, Franklin still had little understanding what was in his future, only now he was more willing to listen. “What can I do? I don’t know what you expect out of me.” Frantic, Franklin believed he finally lost his mind and grew tired of fighting against it. The sooner he allowed himself to be swept along, the easier it’d be for him. The decision not to fight anymore filled him with a peaceful calm he never before experienced. On some level, he did so because he wanted to help Tanok and the kind old woman he’d met, not because he was chosen or for any other reason. If believing himself insane would help, then so be it.
Not even a flinch or facial tick gave a hint as to what Tanok was thinking or feeling. “That you will learn. Come, there is a great deal of work to do. There will be a price to pay.”
Franklin nodded . What did he have to lose? A sharp pain in his head caused him to wince as Tanok stood, watching him.
“It has begun.”
*****
Doug stood in his light blue scrubs looking down at the freshly-shaven head of his patient. Until ten minutes ago, he was ready to believe he’d been imagining his gut feeling that something was wrong with Franklin. Now, he was ready to do what he could to save his life. While such things were common in medicine, he had hoped never to experience this himself. The staff, he was proud to say, handled the emergency perfectly.
Across from him , another resident, Doctor James Howell, stood watching the senior doctor preparing himself. While the stomach specialist was out of his league, he would assist as best he could. One of eight doctors in the hospital, he was the only one available since two were on vacation and the rest unable to be reached. This was one of the few times he ventured from the second floor on professional matters.
The two nurses and lone attendant left the rest of the hospital short-handed for the time being should anything of consequence happen, but the odds of that were slim. They wouldn’t be missed for some time, or until lunch for the other nurses. All three of them were nervous, as this was the first true emergency they ever faced. General practice was to send the critical patients to Settler’s Grove by helicopter, but the thirty minutes wouldn’t be fast enough. From what Doctor Doug had told them, they had another ten minutes at most, which would’ve meant their patient
“Symptoms? What are they?” Franklin’s voice cracked when he spoke. For the duration of her story, he found himself unable to focus on anything else. He wanted to listen to her talk because her emotions swelled his heart and made it weep.
She took a deep breath and pursed her lips in thought. “You will see for yourself before too long. The disease is on our home world.”
He sat watching her for a moment , but when he opened his mouth to ask her another question he was surrounded by the familiar whiteness. Franklin looked around in shock as his gaze settled on the lone figure standing not more than ten feet away looking out into the white space surrounding them.
“Why?” Franklin’s memories were restored and the new images combined with the old ones to form a history of an Empire he feared no longer existed.
“That was our home world, Mekah.”
“Why?” Franklin clenched his hands into fists as his anger began to rise to dangerous levels.
“A short time ago , that woman died. She died after witnessing our people grow sick and die. Those worlds that avoided becoming sick attacked those that were with weapons beyond your ability to understand… but nothing could stop the disease except the expanse between this world and the others.”
“Why ? Damn you! Why did you show me this?” Franklin was livid. His life was enough trouble before the weight of the universe was placed on his shoulders.
Tanok moved for the first time to look at Franklin. “You needed to see for yourself why you need to help.”
With everything he ’d experienced, Franklin still had little understanding what was in his future, only now he was more willing to listen. “What can I do? I don’t know what you expect out of me.” Frantic, Franklin believed he finally lost his mind and grew tired of fighting against it. The sooner he allowed himself to be swept along, the easier it’d be for him. The decision not to fight anymore filled him with a peaceful calm he never before experienced. On some level, he did so because he wanted to help Tanok and the kind old woman he’d met, not because he was chosen or for any other reason. If believing himself insane would help, then so be it.
Not even a flinch or facial tick gave a hint as to what Tanok was thinking or feeling. “That you will learn. Come, there is a great deal of work to do. There will be a price to pay.”
Franklin nodded . What did he have to lose? A sharp pain in his head caused him to wince as Tanok stood, watching him.
“It has begun.”
*****
Doug stood in his light blue scrubs looking down at the freshly-shaven head of his patient. Until ten minutes ago, he was ready to believe he’d been imagining his gut feeling that something was wrong with Franklin. Now, he was ready to do what he could to save his life. While such things were common in medicine, he had hoped never to experience this himself. The staff, he was proud to say, handled the emergency perfectly.
Across from him , another resident, Doctor James Howell, stood watching the senior doctor preparing himself. While the stomach specialist was out of his league, he would assist as best he could. One of eight doctors in the hospital, he was the only one available since two were on vacation and the rest unable to be reached. This was one of the few times he ventured from the second floor on professional matters.
The two nurses and lone attendant left the rest of the hospital short-handed for the time being should anything of consequence happen, but the odds of that were slim. They wouldn’t be missed for some time, or until lunch for the other nurses. All three of them were nervous, as this was the first true emergency they ever faced. General practice was to send the critical patients to Settler’s Grove by helicopter, but the thirty minutes wouldn’t be fast enough. From what Doctor Doug had told them, they had another ten minutes at most, which would’ve meant their patient
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