Chapter 26

Josh ran frantically through the damp streets, slippering and sliding in the mud. It had been just over a week since the rain had stopped, and the clean-up was just about in full swing. Most of the water was gone, save the lower areas such as the Bar and the Brig, which were taking a little longer to lose their swimming pool status. Josh flew past the market stalls, receiving some strange looks in the process. The colony had been dark power-wise since the water receded. They had miraculously had just enough reserve power to keep the shields up until the houses were out of danger. A few particularly low-lying buildings had got a bit wet on the inside, but nothing too dramatic had resulted. For the most part, the colony had been spared.

The young doctor leaped over a small pool on the side of the street. The plan was to turn the power back on in sections over the next week, as soon as the reserves had built up sufficiently once more. This meant the security systems and cannons were still down, but the council was hopeful the fence would be enough to deter interested creatures for a little while longer. The watery sunlight of late and the small bits of ore a few brave souls had managed to retrieve from the quarry had provided enough electricity to get the essential buildings up and running again - dimly-lit and with no air filtering in order to conserve power, but running nonetheless .. just like Josh at this particular moment. He passed a middle-aged woman with a small child and finally burst into the Infirmary, muddy feet and all. His mother looked up quickly as the commotion reached her ears, only to frown at the absolute mess he was once again making of the floor.

"Josh!"

"Mom!" Elisabeth's oldest son panted, looking a little shaken after the exertion of his trip. "Some of the Sixers are back. With Boylan. They don't look so good, you better come quick."

Elisabeth nodded and swung into action immediately, pausing half a second later to glance back up at him, a sinking feeling taking hold of her as she processed his last words.

".. 'some'?"

The battered group of travellers dragged themselves wearily through the front gate. Some were barely managing to stay upright, some were assisting friends and former enemies to make it the last few steps to their destination. Some had lost their strength long ago and were now being carried. All looked as though they'd barely slept in months. Boylan was bringing up the tail, carrying a small child that had a nasty gash on its upper arm. It clung to him like a tiny monkey, gripping the back of his torn shirt as though its life depended on it. In all probability, it had.

Boylan himself was splattered with dried blood, though it was unclear at this stage whether it was his own or the child's. He reached the edge of the centre platform and simply stood and waited, looking a little dazed to be finally back to safety once more. Elisabeth approached him as the rest of her medical team fanned out and began to assess the damage.

"Boylan?"

He acted as though he hadn't even heard her. She touched his arm lightly, causing him to jump a little.

"Tom?"

"Hm?" This time he turned to look at her, and Elisabeth felt something inside of herself shrink back. As battered as he appeared to be outwardly, the real extent of the damage was here, hidden behind his eyes. Heaven only knew what nightmares the past few days had brought with them. She gestured to the step on the edge of the platform.

"Sit down. Let me see what you've done to yourself."

Boylan shook his head and stared around at the various emergency shadecloths which were being erected above the town centre as they spoke.

"Thanks but no thanks, Doc."

"It's not a request." Elisabeth smiled kindly as he turned back to her. "You need medical attention. So does he."

As she nodded to the child, Boylan relented and sat down heavily on the step. Elisabeth kneeled next to him and opened her medical bag. It was understood by some unspoken rule that the child should be treated first, but all attempts to draw him out proved unsuccessful. The boy refused to move or even to look at her. He simply buried his head deeper into Boylan's shoulder and grew still again. Elisabeth moved to brush a section of dark hair away from the child's forehead and then glanced up at Boylan in surprise.

"This is Vaughn Declan." A shadow of understanding crossed her face. "Then .. Aaron and Maureen .."

"Dead." Boylan muttered, his red-rimmed eyes staring around hopelessly at the gathered crowd. Elisabeth noticed his grip on the child tighten slightly and wondered vaguely if he realised he'd done so. The thought flew out of her head a second later as she heard her husband's grim voice beside her. How long had he been standing there? Boylan definitely hadn't noticed his presence yet .. or maybe he was only pretending he didn't. Jim was watching the little trio with an unreadable expression.

"Where are Mira and the others?" He attempted to keep the tremble of fear out of his voice, but Elisabeth heard it and took note. Boylan shook his head and drew in a ragged breath.

"I don't know, we got separated."

The barkeeper looked tortured. Jim's eyes slid shut as Boylan rested his head on the child's shoulder for a minute.

"How many, Boylan?" The question came out sharper than he had intended. Still, he surmised, the man in front of him was responsible for this. He had led every member of his little rebellion into danger. He'd be lucky to get off with a minor tongue lashing.

"How many were killed because of this unnecessary expedition? How many will never come home all because you wanted to make a point?"

Boylan bit his lip and shook his head hollowly as Elisabeth shot her husband a warning look. Jim ignored her and drew closer, receiving a few curious stares from the nearby stations as he did so.

"How many, Boylan?!"

"I don't know!" The barkeeper burst out, causing the child in his arms to start crying softly. Boylan looked as though he was about to join him. "It was dark. They kept coming from nowhere .. Aaron, Maureen, Paul, Edna .. Watkins, Hodge, Seth .. they just kept coming .. they were everywhere .. nothing we could do .."

When Boylan's haunted voice faded, Jim shook his head and walked away a few steps, his hand over his mouth as though he was afraid of what might be about to come out of it if he stayed. Elisabeth, deciding it was high time this interrogation was postponed in favour of an approach which would have far less detrimental effects on the health of her patients, turned back to Boylan sympathetically.

"Were you hurt anyw-"

"AHHHHH!" An agonising scream was unleashed a few metres away. Elisabeth and Boylan looked over to see a nurse gingerly removing a filthy dried bandage from the jagged leg stump of a man nearby. Vaughn finally lifted his head and tried to see what was going on, but Boylan raised a hand to shield his view. The toddler gave up almost instantly and dropped his curly head down onto the barkeeper's shoulder once more, falling to studying Elisabeth with dark eyes. She smiled encouragingly.

"Hi, Vaughn. I'm Doctor Shannon. Do you remember me?"

No response whatsoever. The child continued to stare. Elisabeth persisted.

"That looks like a nasty bump on your arm. How about we see if we can make it better?"

Still no response. Elisabeth raised her eyebrows at Boylan, who shrugged a little. Taking a small bottle from her bag, Elisabeth held it up to the boy.

"This is antiseptic. It's like water that cleans your skin. See?"

She sprayed it onto her own arm to demonstrate.

"Now, it might hurt a little. Can you be brave?"

The child met her eyes silently. It was impossible to tell whether he understood what she meant or not. Boylan nodded to her.

"Go ahead, Doc. Do what you need to do."

Elisabeth reached out and took the little arm gently, spraying lightly at first. Vaughn's eyes had left her face in order to watch her tend to his arm, but apart from this movement, he didn't appear to have any reaction at all. She pulled back and watched the spray as it bubbled up and rolled down his arm before meeting Boylan's eyes a little sadly.

"He's still in shock, I think, poor little thing. I'll finish here quickly and then we'll have a look at you."

"I'm fine, Doc." Boylan protested as she pulled out another little glass bottle from her bag. "Just look after him."

Elisabeth looked up at Boylan with a smile as she sprayed the second round of treatment on.

"You look like you've been doing a pretty good job of that yourself."

Vaughn seemed to be satisfied that Elisabeth knew what she was doing and turned to study his protector's face. Boylan smiled briefly back at him.

"Found him crying in the mud after one of our midnight terror attacks. His folks were nearby .. for the most part."

Elisabeth grimaced before suddenly finding Jim close by again, staring down at the group with folded arms.

"And naturally, you decided to come to the rescue."

Boylan glared up at him as the child fingered a tear in his shirt.

"Contrary to popular opinion, Commander, I'm not completely heartless."

"Could've fooled me."

As if on cue, another wretched scream came from the other side of the temporary war hospital set up in the town square. Elisabeth sat back on her heels and rubbed the boy's mud-stained leg gently as she put her supplies away.

"There. He'll need a few more sessions over the next few days, but the healing process has begun well. You're a brave little one, aren't you?" She met Boylan's gaze firmly. "Right, your turn."

The prospective patient began to shake his head, but Elisabeth wasn't about to take no for an answer.

"I'm afraid this is a non-negotiable, Tom. We'll find someone to hold him for a few minutes." She glanced up hopefully in her husband's direction. "Jim .. ?"

Jim's expression was still hard and set as he stared around at the wounded folk, both old and young, scattered about him, but Elisabeth's pleading expression was fairly convincing. He sighed and relented.

"Alright, alright."

Elisabeth smiled warmly.

"Thank you-"

"Reynolds!" Jim hollered across the platform. "Come here for a minute!"

Elisabeth's smile twisted dryly and she shook her head as Mark came jogging up.

"Yes, sir?"

"Hold the baby." Jim commanded immediately, leaving no room for negotiation. Mark turned uncertainly toward Boylan, who was currently trying to extract himself from the stubborn child's grip. After a questioning glance at Elisabeth, who returned a sympathetic one of her own, the young soldier stepped forward and lifted the squirming boy, holding him awkwardly as Boylan retrieved the remaining parts of his person from the child's fingers. Vaughn was beginning to cry in earnest now. Mark, who had never held a baby in his life and was thoroughly out of his depth, attempted to calm him by holding him out and bouncing him up and down gently.

"Come on, don't cry .. easy .." This didn't help. The toddler continued to cry, his voice rising in pitch and volume with every passing second. Interestingly enough, Mark's stress levels were rising at about the same rate. He attempted to juggle the struggling boy clumsily, a note of desperation entering his voice.

"Jim, I don't .."

"Reynolds, he's not a milkshake." Jim protested, suddenly growing tired of the situation and the noise and wishing he were back in his office. "Here."

The commander stepped forward and took the distraught child, turning him around and placing him securely back in Mark's arm.

"Now support him. Not too tight."

Elisabeth glanced up at them and met Boylan's eyes with a smile, but said nothing. Jim stood back and observed.

"Easy does it. Rub his back. Not too hard."

Mark reluctantly obeyed. The child dropped his head down against this new shoulder and cried quietly, clinging to a fistful of the olive green shirt. Mark continued to rock the boy gently up and down as Jim abandoned him to wander off through the ranks of makeshift beds.

A few minutes later, Elisabeth stood up.

"Minor cuts and abrasions. Your blood pressure is high, but other than that, you've managed surprisingly well. A good wash might be in order though."

The patient accepted this in good humour and glanced up at Vaughn and Mark. Reynolds grinned back. The boy was sleeping peacefully, still clutching his handful of fabric as the tears from a few minutes earlier continued to dry on his cheeks. Boylan looked over at Jim, who had returned somewhat and was watching from a few metres away.

"His Dad was in security."

Jim nodded silently and turned his attention back to Reynolds with a faint look of approval. Fortunately for him, Mark was too busy shushing a random passer-by to notice the momentary lapse in judgement. Boylan got wearily to his feet and dusted himself off. It was a pointless exercise, given the extent of the grime caked to his clothes. They were beyond saving, he realised with a sigh. They would have to be thrown away. Great.

Mark looked up to see the older man watching him silently and made to pass the limp child over, but was halted by Boylan's raised hand.

"There's no hurry. I don't want to disturb him. First good sleep he's had in days."

After waiting for another couple of seconds, Boylan nodded resolutely.

"Right. If you'll excuse me, I'll be back for him in an hour .. or two. I'm in desperate need of a decent decontamination myself."

Mark began to protest, but Boylan would not be moved. He beamed around and patted Mark's arm.

"Good on ya, mate."

Mark tried to cling to the dying hope that the other man was joking, but he felt his heart sinking by the second.

"Wait, you can't just-"

"Don't stress, Corp, you'll be right."

"But-!"

Turning a deaf ear to the pleadings of the young soldier, Boylan set off across the square and soon disappeared. Mark then turned to Elisabeth with an entreating smile, but she didn't seem to be inclined to rescue him either. Instead, his future mother-in-law raised her eyebrows and smiled kindly.

"Good practice. You'll be fine. Now if you'll excuse me, I have far too many other people needing my attention today .."

With a worried frown, Elisabeth deserted him as well, and Mark was left to wander amongst the scattered civilians, trying to make as little noise as possible so as not to wake his sleeping bundle.

Jim had meandered away again, feeling at an uncomfortable loss as to what he was supposed to be doing. He felt he needed to stay here and maintain his presence in the wake of the suffering these people had recently been through - going back to his office would imply that he simply didn't care - but there really wasn't much for him to do. The medical staff were busy doing their jobs, no one wanted to talk to him, and even his own soldiers seemed to be wrapped up in their own tasks. Good for them. Jim had to content himself with wandering around in aimless circles and try to appear as though he knew what he was doing and wasn't simply just an unnecessary fixture of the event, which was, in fact, exactly what he knew himself to be at this particular point in time. He was relieved to hear his wife's gentle laugh behind him.

"Knows how to wriggle out of uncomfortable situations with the best of them."

He turned to her as she paused next to him, evidently on her way to attend to some other poor soul.

"Who, Boylan?" A begrudging smile slipped through despite himself. "Yes, he does."

He watched as Elisabeth's face took on a strangely affectionate expression and followed her gaze to where Mark was pacing slowly. He appeared to be muttering something to the baby on his shoulder .. or perhaps he was singing. It was hard to hear anything from this far away. Regardless, Elisabeth rested her head on her husband's shoulder for a moment.

"You know, our daughter could do a lot worse."

Jim looked sideways at her and then turned back to Mark, shaking his head a little in defeat.

"I know, I know."

Reynolds, as it turns out, was indeed singing disjointed pieces of some half-forgotten lullaby to the boy as he formulated his master plan, continuing to watch his commanding officer out of the corner of his eye. After what seemed like an eternity, Reilly finished taking down an injured man's version of current events and crossed the plaza near to where he was standing. Mark caught her up easily, assisted by the fact that when she realised what he was carrying, she stopped altogether, a grin finding its way onto her face.

"Well, it is nice to see someone else honing their motherly instincts for a change, Corporal."

Mark's forehead creased as though he had the weight of the world on his shoulders.

"I'm happy to do it, Sergeant. But .. I feel my services are better utilised in .. other .. areas." He turned a little so Reilly could have the full effect of Vaughn's angelic face as he slept. "Would you .. ?"

Reilly chuckled unsympathetically.

"As much as I would love to help you, Reynolds, I wouldn't dream of depriving you of the opportunity." She patted him on the shoulder dismissively and turned to walk away. "Good luck."

"But he's an orphan!" Mark blurted out despairingly.

Reilly looked over her shoulder at him, the smile having vanished from her features.

"I am sorry to hear that. But it does make me twice as glad he has you. Keep up the good work, soldier."

As she turned away seriously, Mark threw his head back in misery, but the intended trajectory was halted by a choke of laughter behind him.

"I thought a good soldier was supposed to maintain his composure at all times."

As he turned to face his future wife, Maddy's face transformed into a satisfying expression of surprise.

"What-who's this?"

Here was his chance. Despite the assumptions often made about the independent thought of the army members, Mark was quick on his feet. And he knew his future wife very well. She could never resist a lost or abandoned creature. For that matter, none of the Shannons could .. except maybe Jim. Reynolds gazed mournfully at the child in his arms and sighed.

"He's an orphan, Maddy. His parents were lost out there. He's all alone in the world."

Maddy's eyes widened in distress.

"What's his name?"

"Vaughn." Mark replied, rocking the boy gently. "Listen, Maddy, I don't really want to keep exposing him to all this. It's not good for him. He's been through enough, don't you think?"

Maddy nodded and reached out a hand to rub the child's back softly.

"Poor little thing."

"Could you take him to the Infirmary? I know he'll be safe with you and he needs to get cleaned up anyway."

Maddy narrowed her eyes at him and shook her head a little.

"Don't think you're getting away with this. I know what you're up to." She reached out for the boy anyway as a guilty grin spread across her future husband's face. "But luckily for you, I do agree with the sentiment. Come here, little guy."

Vaughn stirred a little as Mark handed him over, but Maddy had a reassuring grip and he quickly snuggled back down against her. She cast a heartfelt look at Mark as the curly head tucked itself into her neck, then proceeded to rest her own head against it and rock back and forth slightly. Mark was a little in awe of how naturally the process seemed to come to her. After a minute or two, she was reassured that he was settled enough to begin the very short journey over to the Infirmary. After exchanging a farewell wave with Mark, she set off, but only got two steps before turning back slowly, a sudden thought gnawing at her.

"You said he was an orphan? He really has nowhere else to go?"

".. that's right .." Mark suddenly had a sinking feeling that he'd played his part a little too well. Maddy took a step toward him and smiled entreatingly.

"Mark, you said it yourself he has no one now. You don't suppose we could-"

"No." Mark was rescued unexpectedly from his self-made dilemma by the firm voice of his future father-in-law. Jim, who had finally tired of wandering about aimlessly and was now heading back to his office, had chanced to pass at that exact moment and had overheard the fear-inspiring suggestion. His voice now left no room for further discussion on the subject. "Absolutely not, Maddy."

"But Dad-"

"Not gonna happen." Jim raised a warning eyebrow at each of them in turn as he continued his beeline for the rotting Command Centre steps. "Don't even think about it."

Maddy sighed and shrugged a little at Mark, running a hand over the boy's dark hair wistfully.

"Better get him to the Infirmary."

Mark smiled sympathetically and nodded his agreement, his calm exterior belying the fact that his heart rate was only just beginning to return to normal.

"Alright. Thanks, Maddy."

He watched her walk away as fresh beads of sweat broke out on his forehead. He swiped them away with relief. For once, he was glad of Jim's reproving tongue. He glanced around him at the thinning crowds. Most victims had been seen to by now, but there were still a few scattered medical professionals around the place. With the extent of some of the injuries he'd witnessed in passing, he suspected there was a high likelihood that some patients wouldn't make it through the night. The Infirmary was sure to be overcrowded. He pictured his future wife getting bumped and jostled in an attempt to find someone to hand Vaughn over to, the latter of whom had probably woken up with the activity and begun to cry loudly as a result. Mark felt a spark of guilt for sending them over there, but, he reasoned with himself, it was after all the most logical place to send a two-year-old who had been exposed to the elements.

Despite his own best efforts, he had almost convinced himself to go after them when he heard his name called from another direction. Relieved to have something to take his mind off his internal domestic crisis, Mark went to rescue a nearby nurse who had somehow gotten himself tangled up while trying to dismantle the temporary shade cloth. A soldier's work was never done .. and sometimes that was a good thing.

"Hey!"

Malcolm slammed his hands down on Jim's desk. There was really no reason to do it, barring the fact that it had a tendency to startle the other man half out of his wits. But that was usually reason enough.

"Malcolm!" Jim looked up at him in irritation. "Where have you been?"

His colleague gave him a strange look as he straightened up again.

"You .. sent me out, remember?" He frowned. "Are you okay?"

Jim leaned back and nodded, managing to erase most of the confusion from his face.

"Yeah. Sure. I'll tell you about it later. What was the verdict?"

Malcolm paused to swipe a clingy bug off his sleeve and then folded his arms.

"Well, the river is approaching normal levels again."

"Good." It was good, but in this moment, Jim felt anything but happy. "And the snake?"

"Oh, ripped to pieces." Malcolm informed him cheerfully. "Utterly demolished. There's barely anything left. The natives must've thought it was Christmas."

"Charming." Jim squinted at the researcher. "Why are you so happy about it then? I would've thought you'd be crushed you didn't get a chance to study it."

"Oh, I'm absolutely distraught." Malcolm replied, still sounding as cheerful as ever. "But .."

He crept closer and leaned on the desk again as though he was about to divulge a dark secret.

".. I think I may have just solved our energy problem."

Jim pulled out his Plex and began swiping through a series of reports distractedly.

"What energy problem?"

Malcolm's eyebrows lowered further.

"Are you sure you're-"

Jim laid his tablet flat on the desk with a thump.

"Right, right, which part of it?"

Malcolm nodded and began enthusiastically.

"We have an energy problem-"

Jim stared up in annoyance.

"That much I am aware of."

Malcolm continued patiently.

"No, you don't understand the half of it."

Jim leaned forward again and clasped his hands together on his desk.

"I'm sure you're about to enlighten me, Malcolm."

"You don't have to be like that." The head researcher eyed him severely. "I have an idea on how to fix it."

"I though the plan was already to fix it by adding more turbines?"

"It was, but it was done up without my approval by people who didn't know what they were doing." He ignored the Commander's snort and continued. "The turbines only just produce enough energy to run the agricultural department, and that's only because the irrigation system doesn't require much electricity to run."

Jim shook his head. Malcolm had always had a habit of making things more difficult than they needed to be.

"So we expand it! Right? Build a bigger wind farm outside the colony."

"No, Jim. Listen." Malcolm assumed the superior tone that Jim hated with a vengeance. "Wind is unpredictable from day to day, and the turbines have already failed to supply power several times as it is."

Jim frowned.

"Surely the houses can continue to run on solar, though, right? We wouldn't need THAT much extra power."

Malcolm subsided for a moment and watched him.

"You have no idea how this works, do you?"

Jim scowled.

"I know enough. The roofs have solar sheets that supply power to the houses when it's sunny."

Malcolm held up a finger.

".. no."

Jim leaned back in his chair in annoyance and folded his arms.

"Then please, enlighten me!"

"Alright." Malcolm immediately jumped into the explanation he'd been dying to give from the moment he walked into the room. "The houses have solar sheets on the roofs that collect the energy from the sun's rays-"

"That's exactly what I just said."

"Shh. The collected energy, however, doesn't go directly back into the individual houses. We made the decision several years ago to collect the solar power and then divide it, because certain houses were converting more than they needed, and the public buildings needed more to run the equipment. All the gathered energy from the solar screens is sent and collected in the power station."

Jim blinked at him.

"We have a power station?"

"Yes." Malcolm explained patiently. "But it looks just like any other house, so you - being you - wouldn't have even questioned it."

Jim glared at him again, but Malcolm continued.

"It runs the colony quite well, it divides the energy efficiently. It also leaves us more vulnerable in a way. Do you remember the power going off last year? The night the Sixers attacked? How did you think the power for the entire colony went off if each house contained its own power supply?"

Jim shrugged.

"You never thought about it." Malcolm declared. "You just dealt with the problem. That's why you're not a scientist. But the point is, if the power station is sabotaged or breaks down, it affects the entire colony. And if we have extended periods of rain or snow or cloudy days, the solar store is depleted and we switch to our reserve power supply, which is .."

He waited for Jim to finish his sentence in the manner of a professor giving a lecture. When the silence became awkward, Jim finally obliged him with a smile.

".. ore."

"Right. Ore." Malcolm continued in relief. "The generators also run off ore, we use ore to make replacement chips, meteoric ore is even crushed and used as the main ingredient in the cure for syncillic fever, as we now know. Hence why they want it so badly back home - in the future."

He hurriedly corrected himself as Jim gave him an odd look.

"But you see the problem now, don't you?"

Jim nodded slowly.

"The ore supply is limited."

"Right!" Malcolm beamed, looking happier than he should about the situation. "There's a lot of ore in these hills, but sooner or later, the supply will run out, so we need to conserve it."

Jim rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"So turbines and solar aren't reliable enough, ore needs to be kept for emergencies only. I assume you have another idea and you're not just being morbid for the sake of it."

"I do." Malcolm smiled confidently and spread a large sheet of paper over Jim's desk. He hadn't even noticed he'd been holding it. "I've taken the liberty of drawing up some plans."

Jim removed his buried Plex with a raised eyebrow.

"I can see that."

"We harness the river." Malcolm pointed eagerly to the first of his drawings. "Hydroelectric power. We suspend a series of poles across the river with staggered wheels on them. The wheels turn with the flow of the water, the electricity travels down the pipe and is sent underground through here .."

He ran a finger along one of his many lines and briskly tapped a small square at the end of it.

".. to the power station."

Jim nodded, somewhat impressed.

"And what if the river level drops?"

"Aha!" Malcolm pointed to another illustration. "We add sensors along the bar to detect the water level and divert some of the stored electricity to raise or lower the bar as need be. And THAT way, we can always keep an eye on the level of the river as well."

Jim examined the blueprint for a few seconds and then glanced up at the anxious researcher currently hovering above him.

"Malcolm .. you never cease to amaze me."

Malcolm bowed his head modestly.

"I do what I can."

"May I make one suggestion?"

Malcolm raised his eyebrows.

"Please!"

Jim traced a small circle onto the map with his finger.

"Build another communication station there beside the river. It's a long walk, and I don't want anyone to get stuck there after dark with no protection. You can turn it into a backup power storage facility as well, and put all of your monitoring equipment in there, along with the usual food and bed stations."

Malcolm nodded slowly, immediately seeing the sense in the plan, but not wishing to appear too eager to approve it. Jim may not have known a lot, but no one could deny he was a quick study.

"Good. Consider it done." The chief science officer made a note on his paper and rolled it up quickly. "Pleasure doing business with you, Commander."

Jim stood up and shook the offered hand gratefully.

"Pleasure's all mine, Doctor."

The door swung open sharply as Boylan charged into the crowded Infirmary. Once inside, however, he calmed himself and pushed his way through to the back, ignoring the protests of various nurses in the process.

"Doctor Shannon."

Elisabeth finished redressing her patient's wound and turned, frowning when she saw Boylan.

"What are you doing here? What is it?"

"Where's the kid?"

Elisabeth walked out into the hallway and led him to a small cubicle on the other side of the building. Pulling aside the curtain quietly, she entered, followed closely by Boylan. Inside the little curtained room was a small crib, connected to the same holographic network as the other beds judging by the coloured geometrics that began swirling in the air above it as Elisabeth approached. Boylan peered over the sides. Vaughn was sleeping peacefully tucked away inside, nestled deep under his blankets with the corner of one trapped in his mouth.

"He's very healthy considering what he's just been through, but I'd like to keep him under observation for a few days just to be on the safe side. Kids can turn for the worse quickly .. not that I think that's going to happen in this case." Elisabeth threw a smile at Boylan and continued in a quiet voice. "One of our nurses brought some clothes from home. Her boys are older now and don't need them. I'm not going to say he enjoyed his bath, but Maddy and Jess managed to complete the process fairly painlessly."

"I was going to take him back with me. I'm all he knows now, Doc."

"I'd advise against it .." Elisabeth said gently. "At least for the next few nights. Let him rest and readjust, then we can talk about where he's going to go."

"Oh, I have no fantasies about keeping him." Boylan looked down into the child's tiny bed. "I know he can do a lot better than me."

He reached out and touched the little hand as Vaughn slept, smiling briefly as the boy immediately clung to a finger. He was barely more than an infant, and still hadn't lost many of his baby tendencies. He needed so much more than an old barkeeper and a rough shack hewn into the dirt could give him. Boylan sniffed and slowly withdrew his hand. Children were never a part of the plan anyway.

Elisabeth put a hand on the barkeeper's arm.

"He'll be safe here, I promise. Ogawa will make sure someone stays near him, and you're only a few minutes away. Go home and get some rest. You look exhausted."

Boylan nodded.

"Just .. take care of him, Doc."

"We will. I promise. Come visit him tomorrow, okay?"

Boylan gave a noncommittal shrug and made his way back to the Bar. He paused miserably as he entered. The smell was nearly intolerable. The hardened dirt floor could barely been seen beneath the connected pools of muddy water that adorned it. Getting to his own bedroom was a challenge in itself, as the bottom stairs were still buried in liquid and the relentless mould made them slippery to boot. He somehow managed it though, and entered his bedroom behind the Bar with a weary sigh. It was home, and yet instead of feeling welcoming and comforting, it felt foreign and deserted, as if it too was still sad about being abandoned. Boylan shook his head. He was too tired for these melodramatic thoughts. He stripped the mouldy bedclothes off his mattress and collapsed upon it, not caring enough to even bother with replacing the sheet.

Halfway through the night, a cry brought Elisabeth to the little boy's bedside. She discovered Vaughn sitting up in his crib, clinging to an armful of blankets and whimpering softly.

"Hey there, look who's finally awake."

Vaughn looked up at her, his eyes filling with tears. Elisabeth untangled him from his blankets and picked him up, balancing him on her hip automatically. Her children were all too grown-up for the practice now, but some habits were never forgotten.

"I bet you're hungry again, aren't you? Of course you are." Elisabeth chuckled to herself, remembering Josh at Vaughn's age. Little boys were always hungry. She swiped at the crib's holographic chart. This captivated Vaughn's attention. The lights danced in his wide eyes as Elisabeth flicked rapidly through several different sets of information.

"Well." She hid the holograms and looked at him. The boy stared back at her for a few seconds before raising a hesitant hand to touch her hair. Elisabeth picked up his other hand gently and guided it to his own hair.

"That's right, it's almost the same colour as yours!" She couldn't resist the urge to tickle him gently while his arm was raised. Vaughn immediately tensed and dropped his arm stiffly to conceal his vulnerable spots. They stared reprovingly at one another for a moment before Elisabeth tried again.

"What? What is that grumpy face for?" Her face lit up as though she'd suddenly had a marvellous idea. "Are you telling me you aren't .. ticklish?"

She had crept her fingers towards his middle again while she was speaking and now she wriggled them against his ribs playfully. Vaughn's face twisted into a begrudging smile. Elisabeth pretended to be shocked and pointed at his face.

"What's that? What's that I see? Is it a smile? I think it is .."

She tickled him again, and this time, he burst out into a fit of giggles. Elisabeth laughed along with him. They repeated this process a couple of times until finally Elisabeth noticed someone out of the corner of her eye. She turned to see her Head Nurse watching them in amusement.

"You two are going to wake up the whole Infirmary."

Elisabeth grinned unrepentantly as Ogawa approached.

"Sorry. We were just about to go find something to eat anyway." She looked back at Vaughn, who turned from staring warily at Ogawa to meet her eyes again. The Nurse watched as the growing smile on the boy's face was mirrored on Elisabeth's and shook her head.

"Careful, Doctor, or you'll fall in love with him and want to take him home yourself."

Elisabeth exchanged a laughing look with the other woman.

"All part of the job, I'm afraid."

She turned toward the small room in the back where they kept the little fridge tucked away and bounced Vaughn on her hip.

"Now, let's see if we can't find this little munchkin something to eat."

Harlon melted into the shadows as he led his group of prodigals back into the colony that night. Tired, nervous, and battle-worn as they were, the group had been comprised of mostly original Sixers and so had suffered far less casualties than the first returning company. The Sixers would usually choose death over seeking help at the Infirmary at any rate, and so they came in at night, unnoticed and ungreeted, filtering back into the colony life over the next few days so gradually that barely anyone noticed they had returned. Harlon kept to himself. When he did surface, he seemed to slink back to his own shack shortly afterwards without saying a word to anyone. Jim had the grace not to take him to task. He was humiliated, the leader of a failed rebellion, and everyone in the colony knew about it.

Mira was the last to return, but she soon did, to Jim's relief - and indeed, the great relief of the colony in general, as there were few people that hadn't grown to respect Mira over the years .. even if that respect hadn't quite developed into genuine affection. Less than 48 hours after the first company returned, the final group of deserters wandered through the gate. Not even Mira had managed to escape without some losses, and these she blamed on herself, though one wouldn't have known it to look at her. Mira's scars she kept hidden, but they were still there regardless, and it would turn out to be quite some time before she could lay eyes on Boylan again without wanting to ring his thick neck. Despite being shaken and somewhat traumatised by what she had witnessed, Sienna had come through the ordeal better than most. The return to colony life was the best thing for her, and she surprised even herself by how easy it was to slip back into normal activities and dismiss the previous adventure as little more than a horrifying dream.

Many of the colonists who were lucky enough to make it back soon wished they hadn't. Their destroyed homes had been reduced to skeletal remains, their belongings were either washed away or so eaten at by mould and water that they had to be thrown away anyway. Their neighbours treated them with censure, ignoring them when they could and throwing barbed pleasantries at them when they couldn't. The security team assisted in home repairs where they could, and certain kind souls brought donations, but life was miserable for quite some time. They had done what they thought was best for their families. Had circumstances been different and they been the lucky ones, they would have been seen as heroes, people wise enough to have the foresight to get out while they still could. Unfortunately for them, life hadn't worked out in their favour this time, and they were seen as deserters, a label which stuck with them until some greater crisis arose which would weld the cracks and unite the colony again. In the meantime, life slowly began to return to normal, the water soon disappeared completely, and for the most part, the great clean-up took precedence over any other occupation.

For a small group keeping watch near the fence upon the dawn of the following night, however, the immediate future held other plans entirely.