First up I would strongly suggest that if you haven't read the earlier chapters please do so before reading this one, it will explain a lot of things...
Apart from that, enjoy. BB1212
"So," I asked the assembled bridge crew, "who has been running things up here in our absence?"
"Me," Amy Ho said, "along with Bira and Elspeth." I nodded, it made sense. "But because you are, well were, second in charge of the mission it's now you."
"Thanks," I said. She was right, but we had a long way to go to get home and we all needed to be working together. "We have seven pilots left," I said, "and twelve science officers." They nodded, we all knew the numbers.
"We'll go with three main shifts," I said, 'Each with two pilots and four science officers. The remaining pilot will take over care of the shuttle and will fill in if someone is sick."
"I'll do that if you like," Bira said, and I nodded.
"No other volunteers?" I asked, but there weren't.
"OK, Amy is now 2IC, shift commanders are Amy, Elspeth and Me," I said. "Second pilots are Neale, Feliss and Dreea in that order..."
I sorted out the responsibilities quickly and then I looked at the assembled team. We were on the bridge at the time, because it was the only way to get everyone together in the same place. The job we had now was to get home, and with the auto pilot back in operation we were hoping that the only question would be how long it would take. I was fairly sure that we had done too much damage to the YW's for them to chase us immediately, but I was not too sure that we had seen the last of them in a longer term view.
The male survivors fell into two distinct categories. Hugh, Neale and I felt fine, but we had nothing like normal readings on any of the tests that they did on us. The others were extremely sick and they all seemed to have serious lung damage and were prone to developing pneumonia. They all survived in the long run, but it was almost a year before Heith Xang was able to return to work, and some of the others took a couple of months. We had no idea why they were bad and we were good, and at the time we just assumed it was the thickness or makeup of the atmosphere in the different areas where we had left the planet. Meanwhile the medical staff poked, prodded and sampled all of us relentlessly. But what had happened to the three of us was totally beyond the scope of existing medical science at the time.
It took a pretty nasty accident for us to get our first clue as to what was going on. Hugh Scrindle was working out in the gym about a month after we escaped, and an entire rack of weights broke away from the wall and fell on him. We eventually discovered that it was a combination of high frequency vibration from one of the main power generators combined with incorrect stacking that caused it, but that was not the biggest issue. As the rack fell it crushed Hugh's right arm horribly and severed three of his fingers. They took him to the sick bay and the surgeon program told us to operate straight away to try and re-attach his fingers but Hugh, who had remained fully conscious for the entire time flatly refused. He wanted his fingers taped back on and bandaged.
We argued, we begged, we threatened and I ordered but he was absolutely adamant, and in the end we gave up and said OK, but we would look again in the morning. Hugh had changed on the planet, all of us who had survived had, and I didn't want to take away his liberty again by forcing him to do something that he was so strongly opposed to. I just hoped we would still be able to reattach his fingers when he realised that was what was needed.
Looking back at my log book I can see that I went to my quarters and fucked a girl from catering called Rheeley. I can remember wondering why someone would call their kid Rheeley, but I can't remember the girl or the sex. For nine tenths of our return trip this was how it was. The men who were fit had to try and look after the needs of all the women who were interested, and this led to a few great experiences and far more that were mediocre at best.
As the Commander I had to set an example, and I took this seriously, but a later interview quoted Birra as saying that I ruled the ship with an iron rod. I grinned at the analogy and just had to agree.
I went to see Hugh early on the day after his accident, and he looked troubled.
"How are you Hugh?" I asked.
"Well," he said hesitantly, "a lot better than expected."
"Really?" I asked, surprised at the reply.
"Logic would tell you that my hand would be... well stuffed," he said, and I nodded, "but it isn't."
"Right," I agreed, wondering if Hugh had finally cracked, and he must have seen my doubt.
"Look at this," he said, and he started unwinding the bandages.
"Are you sure..." I said, and then I stopped, stunned. Hugh's fingers were attached. They had some angry red lines around the base of them, but there was no other evidence of his trauma. I watched in astonishment as he flexed his fingers.
"How the fuck?" I asked, shaking my head.
"I'm not sure," he replied. "Last night I knew deep down that the logical action would be for me to let the micro surgery robot reattach them, but something else made me refuse."
"Quite rightly," I observed, and he nodded.
"Not only that..." he said, and then pushed up the loose sleeve on the medic gown, "but also this." The crushed arm was an angry bruise from one end to the other, but it was totally the right shape.
"Bloody hell," I observed, and he grinned ruefully.
"We haven't come back from there the same as we were when we went."
Thinking about it I had to agree.
"Some sort of health credit for surviving sex with a YW?" I pondered aloud.
"Only the three who did got through the exit unscathed," he observed.
"And we are the only ones who can't be scanned by the machines anymore," I said.
"Yes," he said, and swung around on the bed. "I suppose I'd better get to work."
"Sorry, but no," I said, and he stopped. "Even if you feel fine we need the medical staff on this just to make sure."
"I understand Josh," he said, "but this is just too boring here." I nodded.
"Ever been to Sydney?" I asked, and he looked confused.