This chapter was written in thanks to my beta for one of my stories in the works.

Disclaimer: still own nothin'

Chapter 12: Problems and Doctors

"Victor was right. You really do give yourself longer shifts," Raven chuckled, sitting next to Richard.

"You looked like you needed some sleep," he shrugged, never taking his gaze off the white hills in the distance. He was so different from Ensign Logan in that way; he stayed focused on the task at hand, no matter how tedious.

"And so do you," she pointed out. "You're not being fair to yourself."

"Somebody has to pay attention. Do you really think Gar Logan would be good to watch our backs?"

"Not in the way you do it. But he's got good hearing as a guard dog, and he would wake us up if something happened," she said. "Is it so hard to admit that you're pushing yourself too hard?"

"I'm not pushing myself too hard!"

"I guess it is," she sighed, shifting her weight so that she lay on her stomach with her chin propped up in both hands. It was more comfortable.

After several minutes of uncomfortable silence in which he seemed to be wrestling with some thought or another, he asked, "Raven, what did I do wrong?"

The question startled her, even though it shouldn't have. She should have heard it coming, after all. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, what did I do wrong with Koriand'r? You got really mad at me for some reason," he said, this time actually turning to face her.

"I just don't want you getting a false sense of security with her. She was just kidnapped, I highly doubt that she actually trusts you," she said. Now that she thought about it, she wasn't really sure why she had exploded like that.

"I've dealt with this sort of thing before, Raven. Of course I knew that. I just wanted to know if maybe you knew something I didn't, the way you were going on like that," he explained, returning his gaze to the white hills.

"So, anything interesting?" she asked. "All I see are white hills."

"No, they're not just hills," he said. Indicating the curved end of one such hill with his index finger, he said, "If you look carefully, you can see a boot sticking out of the snow. I'd say they're waiting for us to move, or at least until they get orders to move. Since this officer hasn't hidden herself very well, I'd say she's either an ensign or a lieutenant."

"She?" she asked. Richard Grayson never ceased to amaze her.

"Look at the design of the boot. First of all, it's a lot smaller than most boots, and the design itself is definitely feminine."

She shook her head. "All I can see is a purple toe," she sighed.

"Like you said, I've been pulling a longer shift than normal," he shrugged. "Besides, I've been trained to notice these things. And not just at the Academy."

As much as she wanted to know the story behind that statement, Raven knew when it was not appropriate to ask. And it definitely wouldn't be appropriate to ask while Richard was so intent on his work. "And speaking of long shifts, I still think you should go to sleep. Now."

"Is that an order, Commander?" With any other officer, she would have thought he was being insubordinate. But she caught the teasing tone in his voice.

"Yes it is, Lieutenant. Bed. Now," she said, fighting the laughter in her voice.

"I'm not tired," he countered.

"I don't care. I don't want a tired security officer on my team!"

"I've gone without sleep before."

"Then we're going to have to fix that bad habit."

"But I-"

"Sleep, already, for crying out loud!" she sighed, trying her best to sound angry.

"You're not really mad at me," he pointed out.

"I'm about to be," she said, finally finding that growl in her voice.

"Okay, okay," he laughed, holding up his hands in a gesture of defense. "I'm going to go to sleep now, alright?"

"That's better," she said, turning her attention to the hills to show him that she was very much capable of taking over for him. But he didn't lie down. He just... sat there. Finally, she blurted out, "What are you doing?"

"I'm going to sleep," he said matter-of-factly.

"Sitting up?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because."

But Raven had finally managed to regain control of her empathy. She heard the rest of it. "Because you're hurt, and it's uncomfortable to lie down."

"I really think it was a mistake to pair me with an empath," he sighed, leaning his head back against the wall.

"Maybe it wasn't a mistake," she said, staring at her hands.

"You think they did it on purpose to keep me in check?" he asked teasingly.

"Yes. But that's not what I meant," she said, staring harder at her hands. If she tried it, she could really hurt him. But if it worked...

"You've got a plan," he said. It wasn't a question; he knew. Somehow, he knew. "And from the looks of it, it's a dangerous plan," he added.

"It's more than a little dangerous," she said.

"Then we're not going to try it," he said, as if that was the end of it. "We can't put you at risk."

"It wouldn't be dangerous for me," she whispered, but he heard it.

He leaned forward slightly, eyebrows raised. "Let's hear it, then."

"And why don't you mind putting yourself at risk?" she asked. "You just closed the matter because you were afraid you'd lose me."

"I hate losing an officer," he shrugged. "It's been drilled into my head. But me? I'm used to taking risks. And so far, I've been incredibly lucky."

She sighed. "If we try this, you have to promise to tell me why you hate losing an officer. The real reason."

"That's not a fair trade."

"I think it is."

"Fine. Let's hear the plan first before I make any promises."

TTTTTT

"Your Highness?"

Blackfire sighed. She was not in the mood to receive more bad news. "What?"

"We have a problem."

That was not what she wanted to hear. "Then fix it. I can't run everything by hand," she said, waving off the comment.

"We don't know how."

Well, that was certainly unexpected. "Didn't Commander X report back to you?"

The lieutenant on the screen shook her head, her pretty eyes wide. "Yes, but..." she paused, trying to find words to say. "He does not know what to do either."

That's definitely new. "Are we talking about the same Red X here?" she asked before she could stop herself.

"Here, let me talk to her," said a voice from off-screen. The lieutenant stepped away from the screen, and Red X stared back at her. "Commander Raven and Lieutenant Grayson have disappeared. I'm having a hard time pinpointing their position because of the interference from the snowstorms around the mountain," he said.

Good old X, always getting right to the problem. "Then start guessing. Can't you teleport in and out of places?"

"I'm running low on xinothium. I asked some of the officers I knew were coming on your ship to bring some more. I can't even come over there, and you're relatively close."

"How did they disappear, anyway?"

"You were right about the Azirian. She does have some sort of powers. Explains how she was able to get past our security systems. The problem is, I've never dealt with this kind of thing before. For all I know, they could be back at their headquarters."

"I highly doubt that. If they went back there, they'd have brought my sister with them. Why just Lieutenant Grayson?"

"Your Highness, if I may speculate?" the previous lieutenant piped up, and X stepped back so she could speak. "Our reports indicate that Lieutenant Grayson had been wounded. Perhaps he needed medical attention."

"Sounds like a good place to start. Thank you, Lieutenant...um..."

"Vane, Your Highness."

"Vane. Right. X, get on it. I don't care if you have to hike up the mountain yourself. I do not need word of this leaking out."

"With all due respect, Highness, I think Yamoch would be better suited for this. Since I can't fly," X said, though she knew the words had cost him dearly. Red X hardly ever turned down an assignment, and he hated admitting when someone was better.

"Alright, send him then. I don't care. Find the nearest medical facility and bring them back," she sighed, massaging her temples. "I'll be there in less than half an hour."

TTTTTTTT

Ever since the age of exploration had started, medical facilities had been getting strange patients. They learned to adapt, and now, hardly anything could surprise a doctor. But every once in a while, a surprise would pop up.

This was one of those surprises.

Brian rubbed his brown eyes once more, just to make sure he wasn't hallucinating. But he wasn't. If he had been, he'd have had to report to the counselor, and he didn't much care for Counselor Karie. So he wasn't sure to be scared that he wasn't hallucinating, or to be happy.

"How did you get here?" he finally managed to ask.

"That would take a long time to explain," said the young man that had suddenly appeared on the countertop. "I'm just surprised I made it here. You don't happen to know what happened to my companion? An Azirian woman? Purple hair? Violet eyes? Not a people person?"

"Nope, sorry. All I know is, you're suddenly sitting right next to a very important experiment of mine, and I'd very much appreciate it if you didn't crush it, okay?"

The young man smiled, then hopped down, giving Brian a chance to look him over. From the looks of him, he was just a normal human. The uniform indicated the rank of lieutenant, and he had blue eyes and a mop of black hair. Very normal looking, if you didn't count the fact that he was here. But, then, as a doctor, it was fairly easy for him to see the young man's wince of pain.

"But I bet your being here isn't an accident," he said.

Surprisingly, the young man just chuckled. "Darn doctors. Way too observant."

"How did it happen?" he asked, grabbing his doctor's robe and some instruments. "Looks like you've cracked a few ribs, and you've got several bruises."

"Hey, there's always risks when you put the uniform on. But, seriously, have you seen my companion?"

"I already told you, I have no idea."

"Because she could be in danger as well. She might have appeared outside the building, in the bathroom, anywhere. We're still getting used to this thing."

"I take it she's the one that brought you here?"

"Do you think I would have come to the doctor if she hadn't?"

Sighing in annoyance, Brian ran a hand through his blonde hair. "Just sit down. I'll have my fellow doctors look for your friend, okay? You've got a more pressing issue. How did you break those ribs?"

He shrugged, not really looking at him, but at the variuos instruments set across the table. "I'm a security officer. These things happen."

"Really," Brian growled, starting to get annoyed.

"Got blasted by a bounty hunter of sorts, hit with a few starbolts, and kicked several times. Happy?"

"Very," Brian smiled. "I should be able to patch those ribs up in a few minutes. Now, sit very still, and I'll even take care of those bruises for you."

The young man obeyed, but his eyes still swept over the counter. Finally, he said, "I didn't know you were a chemist, Doc."

"It's a hobby," he said, waving the comment off.

"Higridilium and hydrogen. That's an interesting combination," he observed.

"We've had a lot of patients come to us with higridilium poisoning," he said. "Speaking of which, you're showing some signs of that. If you can sit still for maybe a minute longer, I can take care of that problem, too."

"Did you ever pinpoint the source?"

"No, but we're working on it."

"You should try the cave on the south side of the mountain. It looks like it ends in a dead end, but if you scan it carefully, it's got a lot of chemicals behind it."

"I'll try that."

"And Doc?"

"What?" he asked, starting to get annoyed with this teenager who thought he knew everything.

"You bumped the experiment. I'd seperate those two containers before we all go up in smoke."

Brian gasped, spun around, and attented to the problem. When he turned back around, the young man was smirking at him.

"What's your name, boy?" he asked.

"Lieutenant Richard Grayson, at your service," he smirked, bringing his hand up to a mock salute.

"Well, I'm Doctor Brian Hunter. And you're done here," he sighed, somewhat glad to be rid of this young man.

"Then I'm off to go find my friend. Thanks for the help, Doctor."