VIII
*NOTE – Hello everybody, it's me, TheManFromMudos, and I'm back again today with the latest chapter of 'Xanthus'. But first, good news! 'Xena' has now officially amassed over 33,400 total views. That's more than the total number of words in my first FanFiction story, 'Oddworld: Al's Oddysee', which came in with a total word count of 33,319! Given the huge popularity of 'Xena', I was only too happy to keep the story going, and the same is true today. So, that being said, here it is: a fresh chapter of 'Xanthus'. So read on, and enjoy. THANK YOU!*
After this not-so-subtle statement, Kelvin left the ward without another word. No sooner than the room's thick, metal door had slid shut behind him, Hinkonnoshi was stood beside it, making sure it was securely locked. A few moments later, he was back over at the medpod once again, this time with the ReStim machine wheeled right up beside him. He fiddled with a few dials on the short machine's front panel, all the while never saying a word, and jotted down a couple of numbers which were displayed on a tiny, LED display bar just above them.
"So, uh, Doctor-Professor?" I asked, trying not to distract the man too much as he worked.
"Is there something bothering you, Mr Jones?" He replied politely.
"Oh no, not at all." I assured him. "I was just wondering… how exactly does this procedure work?"
"Ah, I see." Hinkonnoshi nodded. "Of course, it's only natural that you should want to know more about the process. Well, it's quite simple, really." He tapped the top of the ReStim machine with one hand, and pointed to a large dial on the front with the other.
"This machine is an Electrical Re-Stimulation Device." He explained. "It can administer and maintain a constant electrical current at varying degrees of intensity depending on the procedure's specific needs."
"Right…" I nodded, although I had already gotten the basic grasp of what the machine did. I was more concerned with how it did it. I asked him again, ensuring my question was more clearly worded this time.
"There are two methods that can be used to jump-start cognitive activity in the brain." Hinkonnoshi told me. "Traditionally, the patient would be given a short, sharp shock of several hundred volts, which would instantaneously 'jolt' dead brain cells back to life, in layman's terms. However, this process was not only dangerous, with many patients being electrocuted to death immediately after being revived, but also very taxing on the equipment, which is expensive enough as it is."
"So how do you do it these days?" I enquired, intrigued by the whole process, however morbid it was.
"Well, some hospitals still opt for the original method, as it's quicker and easier for newer doctors to perform." He explained. "On the Constantinople, however, we use the new system. We begin by introducing a low-voltage current to the patient's brain. This allows the brain cells to 'wake up' slowly rather than suddenly. Over time, we gradually increase the voltage, until the patient's brain activity is at an appropriate level. We then carefully disconnect the wire from the brain, and dress the wound so that it can heal."
"Okay, I think I've got it." I said, running through the whole process once more in my mind. "I do have one more question, though. Why will it take longer for Xena- the, uh, patient, that is. Why will it take longer than usual?"
"Well, sir," Hinkonnoshi continued. "Unfortunately, your patient does not fit the criteria of a 'human'. As such, we must proceed under the assumption that she is an animal. As we do not possess the necessary equipment to perform Re-Stimulation on animals aboard the station, we have no choice but to use the more highly-powered human ReStim machine, whilst proceeding with extra caution, of course. The closest animal match that I could make to the patient was that of a human-sized mammal, so the respective conditions will be used."
"Fair enough." I sighed. I didn't like the way that the Doctor-Professor categorised Xena as an animal, but at least he was honest. And I didn't want to run the risk of causing any more harm to her by having her treated as a human patient. All I cared about right now was that Xena would be alive and well again, regardless of how long it took.
For the next few moments, Doctor-Professor Hinkonnoshi fell silent. After a couple more checks, and a few more notes from the ReStim machine's readout, he flipped a switch on the back of the machine. A faint whirring began, followed by a loud 'ping'. He then grabbed hold of a large dial on the machine's front, and turned it anticlockwise 90 degrees, until an audible click was heard. Finally, he pressed some numbered buttons on a keypad beside the dial, and stepped back.
"There we go." He beamed, wandering over to the desk in the corner of the room. "She'll be right as rain in a few days."
"So, what are we supposed to do now?" I asked. "Just sit around and wait until she wakes up?"
"I'm afraid that's all we can do, sir." Hinkonnoshi told me. "I've been instructed by Mr Kelvin to keep a close eye on the patient until the procedure is complete, so I won't be leaving this room unless it's a matter of urgency."
"Well, I can't exactly go anywhere, either." I assured him. "At least not until Kelvin's found me somewhere to sleep."
"You must forgive Officer Kelvin, Mr Jones." Hinkonnoshi told me. "He may seem a little bitter, but he means well."
"I'm sure he does." I agreed, deciding it was probably best not to tell him that I knew Kelvin was actually a sly, conniving, money-grubbing old- Look, he was a bastard, alright? But I didn't want to say that in front of Hinkonnoshi. He might figure out that something strange was going on. Then again, he was sitting in the same room as a dead Xenomorph right now, so…
"Mr Jones?" Hinkonnoshi repeated, probably for the third time in a row, although I hadn't heard him the first two times.
"Yes, sorry?" I asked, snapping out of my needlessly over-complicated thoughts.
"I said 'Would you like a cup of coffee?'" He explained. "You look like you could use a hot drink."
"Oh, I'd prefer tea, if it's not too much trouble." I requested. "Well, as long as the bags are good. The ones on the last ship I served on were sh… not good."
"Very well, sir." Hinkonnoshi nodded, walking over to a cupboard on the other side of the room. "I can't help but agree with you, though. There's nothing worse than a bad cup of tea."
"That there isn't…" I replied, chuckling slightly. "That there isn't." Hinkonnoshi said something else at this point, although his voice was drowned out by the noise of a large, grey kettle which he had flipped on beside him. I sat quietly as he prepared our drinks, and soon, he came back over to the desk, a small, metal tray in his hands. He placed on the desk before me a mug of fresh, hot tea, and a small plate of biscuits, which I graciously tucked into. Then, after taking the tray away, he came back with his own mug, and sat down behind the desk as he took a quick sip.
"So, Mr Jones," Hinkonnoshi began, placing his mug down beside him and leaning back in his chair. "You're a tea man, eh?"
"Oh, yes." I assured him. "Runs in the family. My dad always preferred a milky coffee, though. What about yourself?"
"I'll take either." He told me, taking another drink from his mug. "So long as I've got the right biscuit to go with it." I nodded in agreement, and took a sip from my own mug. I had to admit, it was a pretty nice cup of tea, and talking to Doctor-Professor Hinkonnoshi over something as trivial as tea and biscuits really helped to take my mind off things. I felt a faint bond between us then. Hinkonnoshi spoke to me in a friendly manner, not at all like Kelvin, and certainly not like Davison.
"Well, Doctor-Professor-" I began, taking a huge gulp of my tea before I did so.
"Please," He interrupted, "You may feel free to call me Yosuke."
"If you insist." I replied, shrugging my shoulders. "You can call me Matthew, if you like. Anyway, Yosuke… you sure make a mean cup of tea." I raised my mug in the air in a silent toast, and he did the same. I took another drink, wiping my mouth against my sleeve in a slovenly manner as I did so. Yosuke didn't seem to mind, though. A few minutes later, we finished our drinks, and he graciously agreed to take the dirty crockery away. In the meantime, I stared over at the medpod in which Xena still laid. The ReStim machine still whirred quietly as it pumped volt after volt of electricity into her brain. I desperately longed for her to be better, to see her alive and well again. My only hope was that Doctor-Professor Hinkonnoshi possessed enough medical expertise to do the job. And from what I'd seen so far, he was certainly more than qualified.
Suddenly, the relative quiet of the room was broken as Chief Medical Officer Kelvin burst through the door. He was certainly a loud character, was Kelvin. He didn't appear to be panicked or rushed in any way, but the manner in which he entered the room was quite brash. He walked in, shutting the door behind him abruptly, and made his way over to the medpod. Seeing that Xena was now properly hooked up to the running ReStim machine, he praised Yosuke for his work, and asked to see the machine's readout data so far. After he had spent a couple of moments glancing over the notes that he had been handed, he turned his gaze to me. He stared silently for a few moments, before he eventually spoke to me. He didn't say much, but it was the tone of his voice that really unnerved me. Then again, everything he said was laced with the same serious undertone.
"Would you please come with me, Jones?" He asked sternly.
