On the day martial law is announced and put into effect, the whole city of Nova Aria is on fire.
Lou is stuck on her way home from work. She calls Robert, her distant ex-boyfriend for help, right before a bus crashes into her car. Little does Lou k...
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Charlotte led us into the elevator and pressed '04'. It was noticeably warmer inside. The exhaust fans whirled tirelessly, blowing winds of hot air on our heads. The smell of machine oil subsided a little but was still dominantly present.
"I'll take you guys to the berthing compartment where you can drop your stuff off first, then we will head to the medical department."
I didn't know much about life on a big ship such as this one, but right off the bat, I could see there was no such thing as peace or privacy here.
The first thing I saw when the elevator door slid open was more people. Men and women in uniform marched by in the narrow passageway. The hectic atmosphere down here could match what was topside. People paid us no mind and didn't give us more than a curious look.
I felt relieved. We stuck out like a sore thumb. It would not take long before everyone knew who we were if they hadn't known it already.
Special treatment of any kind in times like this made me uneasy. They made me feel like a privileged asshole. A lot of these people still had their loved ones stuck behind in increasingly unstable cities while we waltzed in on a shiny chopper. Not a good look.
Charlotte suddenly stopped ahead, cutting off my train of thought. I bumped my face brutally into Vince's back.
"Ah! Watch where you going!" My brother exclaimed.
"Sorry," I apologized half-heartedly while rubbing my nose.
"Are you ok?" Robert asked both of us with a fainted smile.
"Fine, I guess. Thanks for asking," Vince sighed and turned away.
The smile got wider and Robert's eyes crinkled when he looked at me, taking me aback. It had been a while since the last time I saw him do that.
Charlotte watched our interaction without saying a word before leading us into the compartment. It was an officer stateroom with a three-high coffin rack that was pushed all the way to the end. A coat hanging rack was on the left wall while build-in lockers, a desk, and a chair were on the right. The cabin smelled clean, or at least cleaner than the parts we had been through. We dropped our bags and went back to the elevator.
The 'click-clack' from Charlotte's black pumps hitting the deck reminded me of my office job. It felt like a lifetime ago. I had cheated the company's sexist dress code by wearing pointed flat shoes, but I always admired women who could walk comfortably in sky-high heels. Not sure how they did it.
We went down to level 05 where the medical department was. The bulkhead was stark white, different from the grey we had seen throughout. The smell of disinfectant overpowered everything else. It was relatively cooler and quieter down here on this level. Besides a dull humming, we could only hear some loud clanking once or twice.
The closer we got to the room, however, the more lively it became. A nurse was talking to a doctor right in front of us before hurrying away.
The doctor looked like a stick bug, extremely tall and skinny with slick black hair. His glasses hung on the tip of his beak nose, threatening to fall at any second. The way he glanced at us over them before going right back to the chart in his hands reminded me of Mr. Hughes, my high school algebra teacher.
"Ms. Sandoval." The doctor acknowledged Charlotte with his impassionate voice. He didn't even look up. "The patient is resting at the moment," he said.
"Surely General Castillon has informed you about our visit." Charlotte was not phased. She seemed used to the doctor's attitude. "This is Vince and Louise Haynes, General Haynes' son and daughter. They came from Miramar earlier this morning," she turned back to us and gestured at the doctor, "This is Lieutenant Frank Owens, Senior Medical Officer."
Lieutenant Owens pushed his glasses up and gave us a thorough scan. He spoke slowly in a matter-of-fact voice that doctors loved to use.
"General Haynes got some bruises and cuts, some nasal fractures, three broken ribs." Lieutenant Owens traced the chart with the tip of his pen as if he were going through a grocery list. "Considering his age, he recovers quite nicely, but we need to keep an eye on the subdural hematoma. Bleeding in his skull due to blunt force trauma, I mean. We're cautiously positive at the moment."
Whatever that meant, my heart had stopped at "bleeding in his skull". Those bastards who had tortured my dad surely couldn't care less if they killed him. I just hoped there would be no long-term effects.
Lieutenant Owens concluded with a click of his pen. "That's how General Haynes is doing. You are free to come in when the nurse is back with his medicines, not before."
"When will it be, Lieutenant? When will the nurse be back?" Vince asked.
"In about an hour."
We were baffled but Charlotte came up to the Lieutenant's face. She flexed her authority or the authority of who was behind her.
"Lieutenant Owens, you must have forgotten General Castillon's order so I will remind you. He said you let General Haynes' family in as soon as they got here and gave them everything that they needed. If you insist on disregarding it, I will have to report to General Castillon and you will have to explain it to him directly. Can't imagine he would be happy, considering everything going on at the moment."
"Please do what you think is necessary." The Lieutenant stared down at Charlotte. "Here on level 05, I am the one in charge. My responsibility is to the patients only. General Castillon will understand."
"Alright, if you say so, Lieutenant. Robert, you won't mind coming with me to the bridge, will you?"
"Why?" Robert frowned. "I would like to stay here with my friends."
"General Castillon has been waiting to talk to you. We can meet with him now. You can talk to the general and I can report this." She looked at Lieutenant Owens with a taunting smile. "Kill two birds with one stone."
"I'll be in my office." Lieutenant Owens sounded utterly bored while walking away.
Robert sighed and turned to us. I could tell he wanted either of us to say something. My brother, however, didn't see his signal.
"Go handle your biz, man. We'll be fine. Probably will be here all day anyway."
"Lou," Robert looked at me. "Do you need me to stay?" He squeezed my wrist, rubbing small circles on my skin with his thumb.
"Why, I'm fine. Don't worry about me. Go see what he wants, get it out of the way... I'll see you later."
I lowered my voice and gave Robert an encouraging smile. With everything going on, I needed time to process.
"I'll see you," Robert repeated.
He let go but stood there for a long moment before finally leaving for the elevator and disappearing alongside Charlotte as the door closed.
