Potholes on Recovery Road

--Gatix--

--Five days later--

“You're late today.” Ms. Queen greeted me with her usual smile when I entered the room.

“You figured out how to tell time?”

“Not really.” She pointed to the clock on the wall. “I noticed you tend to arrive when the long indicator points up and the short one slightly downwards.”

“Ah, sorry.” I put myself down in my regular spot and held her hand. I'm unsure when it became a habit, but it felt weird not to do it. “I was held up. Dax needed to take a look at my head.”

“A valid reason for being late. What did he say?”

“It's all good.”

“Gatix.” Ms. Queen squeezed my hand a tiny bit. “I can tell when you're hiding something.”

I replied with a sigh. “The news isn't as good as I hoped.”

“What did he say?”

“It's going slower than he had hoped. He adjusted my treatment plan, but the likelihood of permanent damage is growing.”

“Oh, no.”

“I'm fine as long as I'm confined to this suit, but I had hoped to at least take a shower by now.”

“I'd recommend a proper bath. It's more relaxing.”

“Each has its benefits.”

“Maybe I can help you once we get back to my world? I should have access to more magic there.”

“Focus on getting yourself healed first.”

“I would say the same to you.” She smiled. “But, if you would indulge my curiosity, I have a question.”

“Hmm?”

“Since you have been inside that suit for an excessive amount of time, how do you take in nutrients?”

“Meaning, how do I eat?”

“Simply speaking, yes.”

“I don't have to. It's... difficult to explain. The suit has built-in nutrient dispensers. It injects the nutrients directly into my bloodstream without me having to eat.”

“Sounds painful.”

“It takes the fun part of eating but keeps me alive. It's not a permanent solution; I'll get sick if I don't eat something proper in the future.”

“How long into the future?”

“Couple months, so a ways off. Dax does remove the helmet during our sessions. I'll ask him for something to eat the next time.”

Her smile turned mischievous. “But since you can remove the helmet, why haven't you done so in here? I'll remind you I still haven't seen your face.”

“The barrel in the corner will kill me if I do so, but other than that, the helmet controls my movements.”

“I see, then hopefully one...”

All sound cut off as a numbness spread through my head, my vision and sound cutting out as I fell over.

***

“Gatix? Are you awake?”

“Uhh, Boss?” I was used to seeing a heads-up display upon opening my eyes, but this one was different. My regular visor featured blue letters indicating enemy locations and weapon temperatures. This one featured greenish writing with more medical words. The green plus sign at the top-right corner was also new.

“Looks like he's back, Dax.”

“He is more responsive than the previous two attempts. Looks like she pulled it off.”

“Pulled it off? What happened?”

“The brain damage.” Boss tapped at his own head. “It seems Dax made a mistake in your treatment. Long story short, something short-circuited up there.”

“Tell Dax to come closer. I need to give him something.”

“Yup, he's back to normal. You can relax now, Dax.”

“I'll do my best, Boss. My deepest apologies, Agent.”

“Don't worry. Like you said, there is no quick fix.”

“Sadly not.” Boss shook his head as I propped myself up. “Dax did a rescan of your head while you were out. The results aren't promising.”

“I wouldn't be lying here if that wasn't the case. Am I going to live?”

“Yes.”

“I'm sensing a “but” there.”

“Dax has run some tests. From what we could figure out, you have about one more use of the fail-safe, two at most. Any more, and your brain risks shutting down completely.”

“Then yank it out? No sense in carrying something that's bound to kill me. I can always hide while the locator beacon does its thing.”

Boss seemed to steal a glance at Dax before returning his gaze to me “We've talked it over, but no. As you've seen, there are too many situations where the locator beacon won't suffice. Dax has made some rather serious modifications to the fail-safe by factoring in the latent radiation of the other world. It should theoretically be safer.”

“And if not?”

“Then I come back to our previous deal; any further brain damage and you're off the mission.”

“Got it, Boss.”

“No, I don't think you do. This isn't me telling you to take care of yourself, Gatix. There might not be any waking up the next time. I'd have taken you off right here if it wasn't for our deal.”

“Yes, Boss.”

“Good.” A knock on the door made Boss turn around before nodding after a few seconds. “Our time is up. Come, Dax.”

“Yes, Boss. Once again, my deepest apologies, Agent.”

I couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. “That's it?”

“You expected more?”

“The Reaper almost got me, and you're letting me off with “don't do it again”? I braced myself for a full-blown lecture.”

“We're all adults here, Gatix. Besides, I'm not the only one mad at you.”

“Sorry?” Boss left the door open after leaving, allowing another armored figure to enter. It was one I'd never seen before. The design was clearly one of Dax's: the spiky finish and layered plating over the chest is something he always does, but I've never seen one with orange lights or horns on the head.

“Eh, hi?” I risked communication as the armor pulled the chair closer. It didn't seem fit to reply in kind. Rather, it clenched a fist and landed a jab against my ribs hard enough for my visor to raise an alarm.

“You idiot! Damn ****!”

“Huh?! Ms. Queen? When d-”

“ ‘It's all good’, you said. ‘Fine as long as I'm in the suit’, you said. You ***** ***!” The light flickered when the second punch landed.

“Woah woah, you're going to damage something here!”

“I should torch this whole room, hoping it will burn away your stupidity!”

“What did I do?”

“You scared me half to death! Falling forward like that? I thought the void had come to claim you. It took all my magic to keep you alive while your colleagues prepared their contingencies.”

Looks like she pulled it off.

“Oh, so that's what Boss meant by that. Guess I should thank you.”

“Were you a normal denizen of my world, I'd have said you owe your life to me.”

“Whereas now it means we're even.”

“Even?! How'd you figure that?”

“I saved your life when the Knight had you pegged against the rock. On the day we first met? I cut off your bracelet, and you rammed your tail through my back. So technically, some of this brain damage could be from the escape you caused, which means I'm still on top.”

“Nice try, Gatix. I had a long chat with your mage while we waited for you to wake up. I know the magic of my world interferes with your teleportation, and I also know you've been hiding the true extent of your injuries.”

“I am really going to break Dax's nose.”

“Then I will consider breaking yours. Why didn't you tell me?”

“I did say the news I received the other day wasn't as good.”

“You didn't tell me traveling between our realms is killing you.”

“I didn't think you'd need to know.”

“Didn't need to know?!”

Uh oh...

“Does our pr-”

“Sorry, poor choice of words.” I held up a hand to stop any further damage to the suit. “Let me rephrase. I don't think there's anything we would have done differently. Dax is constantly working on the teleporter. I'm hoping it gets better from here.”

“You're still not entirely truthful with me.”

“Fine.” I sighed. “I'm at my limit. Dax and the Boss wager I have about one more jump before damage becomes total.”

“We're you planning on telling me this?”

“No.” Ms. Queen made a very ominous sound, but didn't say anything else. “I can travel between our worlds without any problem, it's the fail-safe that's killing me.”

“Then you need to stop using that.”

“It's not as easy when staring at death's door. The regular method takes too long to power up, so I can't use it in battle. I would have been dead if I waited during the fight with Horot.”

“And despite the dangers, they're sending you back in?”

“They didn't want to, but I convinced them.”

“Why? You don't trust anyone else?”

“I... want to see the mission through to the end.”

“And... to take me back..”

“That... is another part, yes.”

“I can take care of myself, you know.”

“Your injuries weren't exactly something you could walk off, not to mention your empty magic reserves. I need to go there myself; I might as well make sure you're safe.”

She sighed, leaning back in her chair. “What are we going to do, Gatix?”

“What do you mean?”

“You won't stop coming over as long as you need that mineral.”

She can't stay here, and you can't stay there...

“It's my job.”

“But it's killing you.”

“Eh, I've been through worse.”

“I highly doubt that.”

Images of red and white flashed through my mind. “This makes top three, but trust me, I have.”

“Tell me.”

“I'd... rather not. Story for another day.”

“I'll hold you to that. Will it help if I were to send out some of my forces to aid the search for your mineral?”

“It might be worth a shot if they can fly. Dax could possibly create a scanner they can hold onto. That will speed things up considerably. I'll chat with him, but won't that interfere with the whole ‘kill the skin-walkers’ thing?”

“We only kill out of self-defense. It would be nice to co-exist under a truce.”

“Low odds of that happening.”

“Been trying for over six hundred years.”

“Six hundred, you say?”

“Not figuring out my age that easy.”

“Had to try.”

“I know.” She leaned back in the chair. “I'll have to investigate my forces, but I should be able to spare some troops.”

“There's one other area we could investigate. The count of Shiriki. His name has popped up twice before. I'd like to visit him.”

“That might be a problem.”

“How so?”

“Shiriki is one of the most inaccessible places in Compolot. I'll share the details with you another time, but there are magics in Shiriki even I would not want to upset.”

“An ancient, powerful city with a corrupt, high-ranking authority figure at the middle, in all likelihood.”

“You're not far off. But you need to heal before any of that can happen. A body under duress needs all the rest it can get.”

“You act as if I've never gotten hurt.”

“Have you sustained head injuries before?”

“Not on this scale.”

“Then be quiet and rest.”

“Fine. But before you leave.” She stopped herself from standing up. “I have to ask the obvious question?”

“That being?”

“The amour. Did Dax hook you up?”

“I was wondering when you'd ask.” She adjusted herself in the chair. “With you... otherwise indisposed...”

Did it just get chilly in here?

“... nobody came to visit me. I was... worried... about you, and with my reserves depleted, I couldn't risk going away from that barrel. Your king, the one you call Boss, visited me on the second day.”

“Please don't tell me you called him that to his face...”

“I'll leave that one to your imagination.”

Oh, I had no doubt she was grinning inside that visor. Maybe that's why Boss was so happy.

“After he updated me on your status, patiently explaining all the terms I did not understand, we had a most interesting conversation.”

“Interesting?”

“Yes.” Her voice seemed to trail off. “It's like he knew exactly what questions to ask and what information to share. It's been a while since I encountered a person like that.”

“Boss has lived an interesting life.”

“I suspect he has. I think he noticed my frustration. He came back the following day and took me to what I would guess to be your armory. The walk was painful, but your mage was kind enough to leave a magic dispenser inside the armory. I was presented with this armor, one modified so I could walk around without a magic barrel.”

“It's quite the gift.”

“It's been a fascinating experience to wear it, as is conversing with your spirit guide, Nev.”

I couldn't help but laugh at that. “I hope he's not been driving you crazy.”

“It took a little bit to get used to him, but he's been a helpful tour guide. I have noticed your colleagues remain weary of me.”

“People are bound to be cautious of an alien.”

“I do not know this term.”

“A being from somewhere other than Earth. It's the same for me in your world.”

“Except your world hasn't been devastated by the dread knights.”

“I know some people on my previous missions that might compare me as such. But I understand Boss' logic. The armor gets you up and about, and they get to test some new tech. Win-win.”

“And...” She turned her head just the slightest bit. “It allowed me to visit you.”

“I doubt that was high on their agenda.” She didn't reply at that. And I just put my foot in my mouth. Great. I sighed at my stupidity. “Still, I am glad you came. Sorry for... passing out like that.”

“Just... don't keep me out of the loop again.”

“Will do.”

After only looking at me for a second, she slowly leaned forward to put her hand on mine. “Good.”