For some reason I could never get this part to flow. This deals with less angst than the other two but it contains some points that I wanted to get across. I believe the medical aspects are mostly accurate. If writing this did nothing else, it got me to actually open my anatomy text book. Sorry if you find this one boring. The next will be better.

Dr. Perry had been in her office trying to make a dent in the ever-growing pile of paperwork that had taken root on her desk when the frantic call for a medteam had come from the bridge. She immediately dispatched a team then tried to get some more specific information from the shaken lieutenant. When she realized what had happened she was shocked. Never in a million years would she have imagined that one of her crew would try to kill themselves. It simply did not happen in her navy. Not even with a crew as traumatized as this one.

Before she had time to dwell, the medteam began relaying back information. 'Single gunshot wound to the head. Entered right temple. No exit wound,' came the reports. 'BP 90/45. Pulse rapid and weak. Respiration shallow and slow. Pupils unequal.' The boy was in shock. That would make the surgery more difficult. Grabbing some tubing to intubate him with, Dr. Perry went to prepare the operating room. Just as everything was ready the medteam arrived wheeling Lucas in. Even before she inspected him she started him on a round of drugs. One would prevent convulsions while the other would decrease the amount of cerebrospinal fluid surround in his brain. Both were standard prior to brain surgery. The third was a dye for the MRI that would have to be performed before she could go in and operate. She made her own brief inspection of Lucas to confirm the medteam's reports then had him moved to the x-ray room. Time was of the essence here and she wanted to get him into surgery as soon as possible.

While the x-ray was developing, the technicians moved the MRI equipment into place and began making a scan of his brain. Thanks to the miracles of modern medicine the two procedures took a matter of minutes. Soon the results were being displayed so that the medical staff involved could decide on the best plan of action. As the only one with any training in neurosurgery, Dr. Perry would be the one performing the operation. There were currently two other doctors serving under her. One was fresh out of med. school and too inexperience to be of much help though. The other primarily dealt visceral surgeries. The x-ray gave them an exact location for the bullet so they knew where to make the entry. The MRI displayed where the hemorrhaging and tissue damage was primarily located. It gave them an idea of what to expect once they got inside.

While Dr. Perry got into her scrubs, the other two doctors over saw the final preparations before Lucas would be ready for surgery. Her thoughts were focused solely on the details of the surgery she was about to perform. When she came out, he was on the operating table connected to a ventilator and several monitors. She noticed as she moved into her position how very young and vulnerable he looked. Banishing the thought, she focused on the task at hand. The area around the entry wound had already been shaved with care taken to preserve as much hair as possible. Dr. Perry took a scalpel and gently peeled back the layer of skin revealing the temporal bone below. Using a small hand-held saw, she removed a portion of the cranium so that she could get to the brain. Trying to do as little damage as possible she located the bullet and pulled it out. Going back over the damage she very delicately repaired the ruptured blood vessels. Once there was no more blood seeping into the brain she set about removing and neutralizing the blood that was already there. Blood is toxic to the tissue in the brain so it was imperative that she neutralize every last drop. The procedure was tedious but necessary. Finally Dr. Perry could begin closing the wound. She repaired the torn meninges as best she could but the arachnoid layer was completely destroyed. Hopefully the body would heal it on its own. She replaced the portion of the cranium and fastened it into place. Using the hole caused by the bullet, she inserted a shunt that would be used to try to control swelling following the operation. Finally she stitched the scalp back together and stepped back to watch as a nurse finished bandaging the wound.

Wearily she made her way out of the room to get cleaned up. She was relieved that Wolenczak had made it through surgery but she did not want to think about the kind of future he was facing if he survived. As she cleaned up she considered how she was going to tell the Captain and Lucas's friends. It was going to be very hard on the crew no matter what happened. A nurse came in and informed her that the Captain was expecting her to report to the wardroom to give everyone an update. Grabbing a cup of coffee she walked back to her office to compose herself. This was the kind of case that made her question why she wanted to be a doctor. For now she was able to maintain a professional distance from everything going on but she knew it was just a matter of time before the personal relationship she had had with the boy would hit home.

Mentally she began listing some of the scenarios she could be faced with as Lucas recovered or did not recover. He could die. That was currently the most likely scenario. He might never wake up. This was also high on the list of probabilities. She dreaded this possibility the most. It would force the Captain to have to decide on whether to with hold nutrients or not. If he woke up there would be side effects. He could have severe mental or physical disabilities stemming from this that would require him to be institutionalized. That would be kinder for the boy than if there was mild retardation. He would find himself reduced to Dagwood's level but he would be aware of everything he had lost. She could not think of a crueler fate. Even a small impairment would have devastating effects on a genius like him. Physical disabilities might be such that he could re-pattern his brain to overcome them or they might leave him dependent on others and unable to remain on seaQuest. Then there was the possibility of personality changes. Someone completely different might wake up instead of Lucas. That would be the hardest on the crew she thought. His prognosis would depend on how well he responded to the surgery but she knew that whatever happened the future looked grim. For the first time she wondered if maybe it would have been better not to have saved him. She was a doctor and it was her job to save people but in this case…could her job be wrong? Sighing and shaking her head she finished her coffee and went to face the crew.

The Captain was speaking as she entered the wardroom. She took the time to look around the room. The number of people there surprised her, which made her feel ashamed because she knew that everyone on the boat loved Lucas. He would do anything to help someone else and people admired him for that. It was a pity that he had been unable to see that there were so many people who would have jumped to help him if he could have just asked. She tried to block the expressions of grief from her mind but it was impossible. Grown men were crying openly. Even the Captain and the stoic Commander Ford had tears streaming down their faces. She heard Hudson's voice stop and saw that he was finished reading whatever it had been that had released all of this emotion. Dr. Perry made her way to Hudson's position and waited until he found a seat before addressing the room.

"Lucas is very lucky to still be alive right now," she began considering just how to express the diagnosis. She wanted them to have an accurate idea of just what they would be facing in the next few days or even months but she did not want them to lose hope all together. She knew that a large part of what would determine if Lucas lived or died would be these people. If they could not convince him that he wanted to live then he would not last the week. If he did live, he would need them more than ever. She finished her speech urging them to help him fight. "Don't let him let go and don't give up hope."

Dr. Perry left the room before the emotions could begin to affect her. She still had a patient to take care of. Returning to medbay, she went to check on Lucas. He had been moved from recovery to an isolated room to allow for visitors. He was still hooked up to the ventilator but he was breathing on his own. His pupils were still uneven but his pulse and blood pressure had returned to normal. A monitor beeped softly as the pressure in his skull increased slightly. The swelling around his brain was just beginning. He did not respond to her inspection in any way. His condition was neither encouraging nor discouraging. She stood for a moment looking at him. His blond hair peaked out from beneath the white bandage encircling his head. He looked very young and fragile. She did not understand why he would have done this to himself. She heard a gasp behind her and turned to see Lieutenant O'Neill standing with a nurse.

"Tim," she said smiling reassuringly at him. "Come, sit beside him and hold his hand. Don't be afraid. Just sit there and talk to him."

"Will he hear me?" he asked timidly.

"I believe he will. I'll leave you alone now." Patting O'Neill on the shoulder, she left the room.

The rest of the day passed quickly. She was very busy and did not have much time to check on Wolenczak except for a quick peak every now and then. She was checking her e-mail preparing to leave for the day when she noticed that she had one from Lucas. Surprised she opened it. It read:

Dr. Perry,

I am very sorry for the trouble I have caused you. I have a few things I must ask of you though. Hopefully I was successful but if I was not I have a few requests regarding my care. First of all I would like to request that no heroic measures be taken to save my life. I understand if you cannot abide by my request due to the circumstances. I do not want to be removed from seaQuest. If I'm not going to wake up please just let me die here. This is my home. Should I need to be transferred somewhere else for long term care please send me to the Greenriver Clinic. It is located outside of Buffalo. My inheritance from my father will more than cover any expenses.

My last request to you is that you make sure the instructions in my will are carried out. I have a legalize will drawn up which will be released upon my death but I felt it best to outline my wishes to you. I have been living almost solely off my UEO paycheck since I first began receiving them. As such I was free to invest all of my other income in stocks and bonds. I was very well off before we disappeared but while we were gone most of my money stayed in bonds and matured and I returned to find myself a very wealthy person. As stated in my will I would like this money to be divided up between my friends and various charities. I already have a trust fund set up for Dagwood so that he will be taken care of once he leaves the UEO. I would like for Tim to receive my company LuWol, Inc. It holds the patents to all of my software designs including the systems that run seaQuest. Tony is to receive the sister company of LuWol, Inc., Quest Games. This company began with a few computer games I developed but has matured into much more. Both companies are completely self-sufficient which is how they survived my absence for ten years. I would like a trust fund of five million dollars to be set up for Brody's son as well as a similar trust fund for Captain Bridger's grandson, Michael. Of the rest of my assets I would like one third to be divided among the leading marine science research projects. The remaining two thirds to be divided equally among you, Captain Hudson, Commander Ford, Lieutenant Henderson, Ben Krieg, Dr. Kristin Westphalen, Captain Bridger, Julianna Lee, Nick Rohlof, and the families of Miguel Ortiz, Wendy Smith, and J.J. Fredericks. Thank you for doing this for me.

Lucas

Dr. Perry stared at the e-mail. He cared so much for everyone. His first thought was always to make sure everyone else was taken care of. She wondered why he could never let anyone take care of him. She had had no idea that Lucas was worth any money but judging from this he was worth quite a lot. His generosity surprised her given that he had written this in the midst of planning a suicide attempt. She was touched that she had been listed among his will. She did not understand what had driven him to try to kill himself in the first place. Vowing to see that Lucas's wishes were met, she closed down her computer and returned to her quarters. She sat for a long time that night staring at a picture of the crew from the beginning of the tour. So many faces had changed. Suddenly she felt tired and old. It hurt losing friends. Having to stand by and watch them die because there was nothing medicine could do to save them. She thought of the young man lying in the medbay waiting to die and his friends struggling to cope with his decision and suddenly she hated her job. She hated having to work on friends. She hated the fact that the submarine lifestyle meant that she always let them in too close. She hated war that brought nothing but death and destruction and ruined promising lives. And sitting there looking at the picture, at everyone's smiling faces, at Lucas's smiling face, she cried.