Author: Milady Dragon
Disclaimer: still don't own them
Author's note: Rescue, part two….once again, I have to apologize for taking so long with this chapter, I had a nasty kidney infection which meant I was down for about two weeks.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Cameron didn't know how long she sat there, on that cold deck, cradling John against her.
At some point, the Castalii attempted to get her up, but she was far too weak to respond, and her friend wasn't showing any sign of regaining consciousness despite what the healer had claimed. So she just remained on the deck, letting the Castalii move around her, not paying any attention to what they were doing.
It just didn't seem to matter anymore.
Eventually she slumped forward, resting her forehead against John's. She didn't try to call to him any longer, knowing he hadn't heard her first attempt. She would just have to wait for him to regain consciousness…if she lasted that long.
Dying was fairly easy, she thought abstractly. The problem with that was, she wasn't quite ready to give up like that. That she would die from this was inevitable, if they stayed on the world-ship much longer. But she wanted more than anything to make her death count for something.
She just didn't know how to do that, not in her condition. Cameron was just too exhausted.
Would rescue come in time? That image of House just wouldn't go away. She would've given anything to see it happen in reality.
Her mind just floated, but her thoughts couldn't escape the inside of her skull. Would anyone feel her death? Or would she be trapped forever, unable to escape from the bounds of her own flesh?
Would anyone know when she was finally gone?
She thought of her family, who already believed her dead. They might never know what'd really happened to her. As far as they would be concerned, she'd died in a car accident. Maybe that was for the best.
Or would House tell them the truth? Would he find out about her, and let them know how she'd truly died? That she'd died as a Tomorrow Person, and not a Sap? Would it matter to them at all? She'd still be gone, after all.
Cameron had no idea how long she sat there, but at some point she felt hands raising her up. She let them lift her, too tired to fight. The burst of energy that had gotten her to the computer core had been her last. She didn't even have the strength to ask about John, let alone open her eyes anymore.
Soft voices were whispering around her, but she couldn't make them out. Cameron just couldn't concentrate on them. She did know when they went down in the elevator; she could feel the slight change of pressure in her inner ears, like another ache she just had to deal with.
Would it be much longer? Or would she be gone before John even woke up? No, she didn't think it would be that fast. Her heartbeat was still strong enough, judging by the thumping it was doing in her temples. But it was obvious something was wrong inside her, and her inner doctor was trying to give her a diagnosis even as she stubbornly ignored it. What was the point, really? It would all end the same way, whether she knew how it was going to happen or not.
Every ache in her was amplified when the Castalii put her down onto one of the thin beds. Apparently they couldn't be bothered to move them into separate rooms, because Cameron could feel John lying underneath her. She was too tired to argue; and besides, this meant she'd know when her friend regained consciousness. Which was a good thing, in her opinion.
Cameron dozed for a while. She had no idea how long she lay there, but the opening of the door brought her out of her light sleep. She didn't have the strength to raise her head, to see who was coming in. She just hoped they'd go away.
"Shit!"
Her heart did a little jump, then settled back into normal when she realized there was no possible way she could've just heard House swear.
"Jesus…Cameron!"
Okay, now she was officially insane. She'd just heard House's voice twice, and that was just impossible. She cracked open an eyelid, just to see who was playing such a really bad joke on her.
House could not be coming through the door, wearing an A-E suit…
Cameron giggled. She couldn't help it. Her mind must have officially gone around the bend, because House just wouldn't be there. Her imagination must be playing tricks on her; she so badly wanted House to come to the rescue, that it was showing her what she needed to see. She was more far gone than she thought.
Cameron giggled again. "My knight in shining armor…"
Her imagination had House kneel beside the bed. He reached out to take her face in his hands…
And she felt him. Really felt him!
Her breath caught. "You're real…." She whispered.
"Last time I checked…" He was looking at her intently, his blue eyes in full doctor mode. His hands were warm on her face. Then he called back over his shoulder, "Loran!"
Cameron guessed "Loran" was the Castalii that bustled through the door at House's shout. He automatically looked very concerned, as he joined House at the bed. The alien's own hand was cool on her forehead. Then he touched John. "The implants are not compatible with them," he said softly. "They must be removed immediately."
House looked like he wanted to murder someone. "I still can't believe the Magestrin did that to your people."
"Neither can I. Nor can I believe my people went along with this…abomination."
"Well, I hate to say this, but your own bunch didn't exactly do the right thing here."
Loran sighed. "You are correct, of course. Now, it is imperative that we get your friends away from here."
Cameron didn't have a clue what they were talking about, but guessed – if she lived – they'd fill her in. Right now, the only thing keeping her head up were House's hands holding it up. She was so tired…her eyelids started to flutter, and she could only hope she'd wake up later.
"Cameron!" She heard House's voice coming from a long way away. "Allison!"
Well, that sounded nice…she wished he'd call her by her first name more often. She wanted to tell him so, but couldn't just then.
"Knight in shining armor…" she managed to whisper, just before darkness took over.
The first thing Cameron noticed was the sound of machines thumping in time with her heart.
The second thing she noticed was that the bed she was in was far more comfortable than she'd been in for several days.
Well, she certainly wasn't dead. In fact, she felt very much alive. Much more alive than she had in days, as well.
Cameron opened her eyes. She was staring up at an expanse of metal ceiling, although it wasn't the same sort of metal as her cabin on the Magestrin world-ship. It was comforting to know there was a difference.
She glanced around, instantly recognizing her surroundings as being a medical suite. In fact, unless she was much mistaken, it was a medical suite on the Trig…
Then she noticed who was sitting next to her bed.
It was House. He was dressed like his usual self – Cameron wondered if she'd imagined the entire A-E suit thing – and he was hunched over, twirling his cane between his hands. He stopped the moment he noticed her looking at him. "Well, it's about time," he groused, sitting up straight. "I was beginning to wonder if you were going to sleep the day away…or whatever the hell time of day it is around here."
"I thought…I thought I was seeing things on the Magestrin ship…" She didn't like how weak her voice sounded.
Cameron was so utterly relieved to see him. She hadn't really realized how much she'd truly missed him, until that moment. She'd completely given up on ever being together again, that him being there was like a weight off her chest. There were so many things she wanted to say to him…but they were a logjam in her throat. All she could do was look at him, the tears forming in her eyes.
"Oh, God, you're not going to cry, are you?" House asked brusquely. "If you do, I'll have to smack you."
Cameron laughed. "No, of course not."
"Good, because that would make me lose all respect for you if you start acting all girly on me." He leaned all the way back in his chair, dragging his bad leg up until his heel rested on the bed beside her. "So, you needed a vacation so bad you had to pretend to be dead to get one?"
"Anything to get away from you," she rejoined, the laughter not leaving her voice.
"Yep, my middle name is "Heartless Bastard". Gave me all sorts of grief in school until I was finally able to show them my parents weren't being facetious."
Oh, yeah, she'd really missed him. She grinned. "I'm sure that didn't take very long."
"You'd be surprised. Some people just don't learn." He rolled his eyes. "It was like trying to teach monkeys to write Shakespeare. Good thing I have you, Chase, and Foreman. At least I've finally gotten you all trained up the way I want."
That comment sobered Cameron. Everyone she'd known back on Earth thought she was dead. There was even a body to prove it. "Well, I guess you'll have to train someone else now, won't you?"
House looked at her like she'd just grown a second head. "What, you think I should get rid of Chase or Foreman?"
Now it was time for Cameron to roll her eyes. "No, I meant…me."
He snorted. "You're not getting away from me that easily. Not after all the trouble I went to, to find you."
"I'm officially dead, House. I can't just walk back into the hospital and ask for my old job back!"
"Don't you worry about that. Leave it to us." He waved a hand in the air negligently.
Cameron looked at him narrowly. "What do you mean by "us," House?"
"I mean Terry and I. You know, he's not that bad in the intelligence department. Too bad he's hanging out the fortune teller."
"You mean Danielle?" Cameron felt she had to stand up for her friend. "Her power is real."
"Oh, I'm sure. And I'm just as sure she really believes in Tarot, too."
"As a matter of fact, she does, but that was how she was raised. John has tried for years to get her to put the cards away, she doesn't really need them anyway, but it's what she knows. They're only a concentration object, actually, but no one can convince her of that. And, before you ask, a concentration object is something a psychic sometimes uses to focus their power." She didn't want to fight with him. Not now.
"Well, for your information, I wasn't going to ask," he answered somewhat defensively.
"Good." Cameron went back to staring up at the ceiling. She wanted to get on some sort of neutral subject, and her mouth was open before she knew what she was going to ask. "So, care to share what's been happening while I was gone?"
And House did. The story took a while, but he apparently wasn't going to skip any of the details. He explained how he'd been contacted about her "death": how he'd called John and Tim, and how things had gone from there. There was something undefinable in his voice as he explained about seeing the body in the morgue, and how John had convinced him that Cameron had still been alive.
Then he went on about their investigation, and how that investigation had led him and Danielle to Castalia…and how they'd discovered that the Castalii were really alive. And then, he got to the rescue on board the Magestrin world-ship.
Through it all, Cameron just lay there, becoming more and more amazed by the moment. Some she'd already known from John; but from his capture everything House told her was new to her. And, when he revealed that the Castalii had destroyed their own homeworld in order to escape further kidnappings from the Magestrin…she had to admit, that had been a little extreme. All they'd had to do was call for help…
"So, the Castalii now have a treaty with the Federation?" Cameron asked, when House was done.
"Well, a temporary one, for the moment. But they're working on a permanent one now, and it should be in place soon."
"Good. And what about the Magestrin?"
House snorted. "They're in more trouble than they bargained for. Which I'm sure you now about, since you know how their world-ship was run." He tried to say it nonchalantly, but there was a steely edge of glee in his voice.
Of course she knew. The Magestrin had completely retooled their ship to operate using the Castalii as power and control, and now those Castalii were gone. Cameron thought about Cardesh, and the other elders, who'd truly believed they'd done the right thing in giving in to the Magestrin. But then, their kin had gone into hiding to avoid another confrontation…it seemed their race were the ultimate passives.
She reached behind her head. There was a large bandage there, where the Magestrin socket had once been. Apparently it had been removed while she was unconscious.
House must have noticed the movement, because he said, "It took a bit of work to remove it. That…thing…had been pretty much entwined through the parts of your brain where your powers come from." He sounded disgusted.
"And my powers? Will they come back?" Cameron really didn't want to know, but she had to. If she had to go back to living like a Sap, well…she could do it. But she didn't think she'd get used to it again.
"You should have full use of your powers in a couple of days."
She was so relieved, she let loose the breath she didn't realize she was even holding. "And John?"
"He's fine too. Although, after Elena had reamed him a new one, he might not think so." He chuckled. "You know, they say these rooms are shielded against outside influences, so the patients can heal in peace, but I think the entire Trig heard that particular argument. Say, do those two have something going on?"
"No." Although Cameron thought they should…
"Hmph. You'd never guess it by the way they fight. She wasn't at all happy that he hadn't contacted her when you went missing, and she wasn't afraid to let him know it. I wish I'd had the popcorn concession…I would've cleaned up."
"Sorry I missed it."
"I can give you the blow-by-blow if you want – "
He was stopped from elaborating by the door sliding open. Cameron's jaw dropped open when she saw it was Chase standing in the hallway. "Can I come in?" he asked.
Cameron glanced at House. "And you were going to tell me this when?"
House shrugged, completely unconcerned. "I didn't think it was important."
"It's not important that one of my co-workers is here, on a space station light-years from Earth?" Her voice actually screeched.
"Should I come back later?" Chase asked, looking completely caught off guard.
"Yes!" House snapped.
"No!" Cameron overrode him. She waved him into the room.
Chase wasn't alone; a man about Chase's age followed him in. There was a distinct family resemblance, although the other guy's hair was somewhat darker. "Glad to see you up and awake," Chase said by way of greeting.
"Glad to be up and awake," she answered, looking daggers in House's direction.
Her boss didn't seem to mind. He just sat there, leaning back, his cane resting on his knees.
"I wanted to introduce you to my cousin, Adam," Chase went on, glancing between her and House.
"Nice to meet you." Adam stuck his hand out. "Any friend of Robbie's…"
Cameron took it, and even though her powers were diminished at that moment, she knew immediately what Adam was. "Hi," she answered in return. "Glad to finally meet you." She glanced at Chase. "So, you knew about me? For how long?"
Chase looked slightly uncomfortable. "Well, pretty much since your friend was in the hospital. You didn't give me much to go on, but I was able to figure it out eventually."
"I see…" She shook her head wryly. Then she grinned. "Robbie?"
"Oh, God, not you too…"
Cameron snickered. This was going to be too good to pass up.
"By the way, Dr. House," Adam replied, "John asked me if I could ask you to come round to his room for a bit."
"Sure," House said grudgingly. He swung his leg off the bed, levering himself to his feet. "Is the coast clear?"
Adam smirked. "Elena's gone, if that's what you mean."
"You read my mind."
"Didn't have to do that, mate. That was some spectacular row, wasn't it?"
"You're not kidding." House turned to leave. But, as he walked past the foot of the bed, he reached out and tweaked one of Cameron's toes.
She was surprised at the contact, but enjoyed it anyway.
