Part 10
"If you come a step closer you die where you stand." Susan's aim did not waver a micrometer despite the chill that had just gripped her heart. After all the tragedies that had happened, she found that she still wanted to live. "If it is my time to die, then my Rangers have orders to ensure I die in peace. Not a single member of your vampire race is going to lay a stinking finger on my soul."
As if on cue, although they were only responding to an intruder alarm, two Rangers entered the room.
"Take him," Susan ordered. "Escort him back to his ship and have a Whitestar ensure that he leaves Minbari space." Then she spoke to the Soul Hunter directly once more, her voice dropping dangerously low. "You go and deliver my message, and remember that it goes for my family as well."
The Rangers took hold of the intruder's arms and began to remove him.
"I have a message for you Susan Ivanova." The Soul Hunter spoke calmly. "Let me deliver it, then I shall leave empty handed."
Susan held up her free hand to halt the group. This was not what she had expected, but there could be no harm in listening. Could there?
"Go on."
"I did not come to take a soul; but to return one."
What? Susan did not understand. Soul Hunters jealously guarded their collections, and they had never been known to give up a soul. Why would they be offering one to her? Warily, she asked the next question.
"Whose is it?"
"Marcus Cole."
A kaleidoscope of emotions clashed within Susan making her head reel. Had she just been offered Marcus' soul? Anger and grief rose up out of the mix as Susan's finger tightened on the trigger, her voice steady as ice.
"You lie."
"You may inspect the soul yourself."
Susan took a shuddering breath. She was shaking, from what she could not tell. She was still angry, but fear and anticipation were also present. Could it be possible? She had to know.
Susan nodded her assent and the alien slowly reached into his bag to bring out a sphere. He held the glowing globe out towards Susan.
"Look into it," he instructed, "Listen."
Susan did so. Concentrating on the swirling colours, she felt more than heard the voice.
"Susan."
It was his. The tenderness she had felt all those years ago reached out to touch her own soul.
"Can he recognise me?" she gasped.
"We do not believe he recognises anything. That is all he says. It is all he has ever said."
"This is a trick." Susan announced firmly, moving sharply away from the sphere. It had to be a trick. There was no way they could have Marcus' soul. Could they?
"It is no trick."
Susan stared at the Soul Hunter. If it was a trick, what did they hope to gain from it? If it wasn't a trick and that really was the soul of that damned noble Ranger, then how did they get it and why would they be giving it back now? The questions filled her mind, swirling around dizzily. And pervading all was the lingering sensation of a love so total and utter that he had given up everything for her.
Now was not the time to make decisions. She had to think.
"Secure him." Susan ordered. "And don't let anything happen to that sphere. I shall question him in the morning."
OoOoO
Daylight was not able to penetrate the cell where the Soul Hunter had been placed. Its location, on the lowest level below the Ranger compound, was in direct relation to the abhorrence the Minbari held for the life form. The thought that one could be entertained, even as a prisoner, had been unthinkable; yet here he was. Hatred and loathing could be felt radiating from most of the Rangers and it was only the fact that Susan had ordered him held that had prevented a number of them from killing him straight out. As it was, only the humans volunteered for guard duty.
The Soul Hunter appeared unaffected by the less than friendly reception. He sat and surveyed the three women in front of him; separated by a table, as if even they did not want to get any closer than they had to.
Of the three women, Marie appeared the calmest, saying nothing but absorbing everything. Gathering as much information as she could to be able to understand the situation. Delenn, even with all her diplomatic skills could not quite hide the fear that a lifetime of teaching had instilled in her. She sat away from the table, not wanting to contaminate herself any more than she had to. Susan did not sit. She had spent the night pacing the grounds trying to reason out every possible explanation and outcome. She was unable to keep still.
"Assuming that this is Marcus' soul," Susan indicated the sphere on the table, "How did you get hold of it?"
"It was a mistake." The Soul Hunter answered evenly, "He was not supposed to die. Our brother had been sent to collect your soul."
Susan growled through her teeth, "I've told you; no one is getting my soul."
"We will respect your wishes." The Soul Hunter conceded with a bow, "But understand, it is a great honour to be selected. Of all the warriors that died in that conflict, only yours was chosen to be preserved. You would have been worshiped for ever."
She glared at the Soul Hunter. The arrogant bastard was sitting there smugly, assured in the rightness of his cause.
Susan's anger burned red behind her eyes as she dived across the table to knock the Soul Hunter backwards off his chair. Delenn screamed as they crashed together to the floor, Susan's hands wrapped around the alien's throat. She squeezed as she spat at him.
"How dare you! Do you think you are God, ripping a piece of someone from them when they die? You are grave-robbing vermin. I should have shot you the moment I saw you. You think it is an honour? But what of the families? Have you ever considered them, thinking that their loved one has gone on to a better place, not knowing that you have imprisoned their soul in a glass prison?"
"Susan. Stop!" The desperate cry penetrated her wrath. She became aware that Delenn was struggling to loosen her grip before she choked the Soul Hunter to death. "Susan. We need the answers he can give us. We must let him speak."
As suddenly as they had been placed, Susan withdrew her hands. Turning away from the gasping alien without a word, she strode to the back of the room. She gripped her PPG, but kept it in its holster. She couldn't kill him yet. The answers first, then the pain. Susan paced the width of the room, struggling with her rage.
Delenn may have stopped the Soul Hunter from being killed, but she did not offer a hand to help him up from the floor. The Minbari only righted the chair and table before retaking her seat and waiting in silence. Marie studied the parties involved with wide eyes, but still did not speak. The only move she had made during the incident had been to catch the soul sphere as it had rolled, momentarily forgotten, from the table. She cradled it in her arms, loath to let it loose into the volatile atmosphere.
"So how did you end up with Marcus?" Delenn asked the question once the Soul Hunter was seated again.
"Our brother did not understand the transference of life force. He did not notice the moment of death as it passed from Susan Ivanova to Marcus Cole. He only saw a soul to be preserved. It was later that we discovered the mistake."
"Was he not worthy of your 'preservation'?" Susan snarled.
Delenn held up a hand to silence her as she continued the questioning,
"Why have you brought him to us?"
"To return the soul." The Soul Hunter explained, "Once, we had recognised that we had mistakenly preserved a whole planet of souls. We investigated to discover if there were any other souls wrongfully taken. Many have been found, and we are attempting to right our wrongs by allowing them some release through other means. Marcus Cole is the only soul so far that we can return to his original body."
"What!"
All three spoke together, then swapped looks of confusion, fear and hope. Susan's strength drained from her. The possibility of what was being offered was so incomprehensible that it threatened to overwhelm her. She sat down to listen.
"It is a exceptional situation," The Soul Hunter continued, "and if any one factor were different, then this would not be possible. We understand that you had the body preserved immediately after death, so there has been no disintegration of its condition. The usual cause of death is the failure of the body either through illness, injury, or natural decay, such that it can no longer sustain the soul. This body has no such deficiency, only a lack of life energy. We believe we are able to replace Marcus Cole's soul within his body and replenish his life energy."
Silence pervaded the room as the women took in the full meaning of what had been proposed. It was Marie who, after looking at the sphere still in her hands, turned her shining gaze towards the Soul Hunter and breathed with unbelieving wonder and hope,
"You can bring him back?"
OoOoO
"We don't even know if it will work." Susan stormed. "It could all be a pack of lies."
The trio had retreated to Susan's quarters to discuss the proposal. Desperately as Susan wanted to bring Marcus back, she couldn't bring herself to believe that it wasn't just some cruel joke.
"What reason would he have to lie to us?" Delenn asked.
"I don't know! I just don't trust that damned race for a second. Do you?"
Delenn could not disagree. "No I do not trust them. But there appears to be no other motive for him to offer us this soul. Unless it is not Marcus?"
"It's him." Susan stated, shivering slightly as she remembered the moment when his soul reached out to her mind. "Of that I'm sure."
"Then the question comes down to if we want to attempt what he is offering."
Susan looked at the others. Delenn was as outwardly composed as she always was, but Susan knew she was fighting to overcome her distrust to work with the Soul Hunter. She had always felt personally responsible for every life lost and maybe regaining one would atone part of her guilt. Marie sat agitatedly wringing her hands. The younger woman had grasped upon the hope without reservation. Her absolute faith that everything would be all right was what Susan feared would be broken. She did not want to see Marie hurt anymore now that her life was settled with children of her own.
"I want to do it?" Marie announced; her face set with the decision made.
Susan sat beside her with a sigh.
"What if it doesn't work?" She said, voicing the fear that was the foundation of all her apprehension.
"Then he dies." Marie quietly spoke. "We have lived without him for twenty five years. We have nothing to lose." She took Susan's hand and squeezed it. "I said goodbye to my Father twenty years ago Ni'fa."
"Are you sure?" Susan asked, realising that, even though Marcus' soul had been offered to her, only Marie's decision was the one that mattered.
"I want him back." One tear, then another ran down Marie's face. "I want him to know his Grandchildren. He used to tell me, 'always grab a chance and you won't be sorry for a might have been.'"
Susan looked into the face of the younger woman and saw there the fervour of the teenager she had first met. And the loneliness. She pulled Marie into a hug and heard her whisper through her tears,
"I want my Dad again."
OoOoO
A Whitestar was dispatched to bring Stephen and Marcus to Minbar. For a week the compound hummed with activity. The Soul Hunter worked under close guard, supervising the assembly of the device, which he claimed would replace Marcus' soul; whilst a section of the medical facility was closed off. The legend of Marcus, retold and elaborated among the Rangers, had gained a new momentum causing vast numbers to gather, trying to glean information. In the end, Susan had to order everyone that was not involved to be barred from the area.
Stephen arrived, cryogenic freezer unit in tow, and a thousand questions. When the Soul Hunter refused to answer them, he became very vocal in his disappointment.
"But Susan!" he complained that evening, "This could be the greatest breakthrough in medical history. To be able to harness the essence of life itself."
"But it would do you no good." Susan marvelled at her friend's enthusiasm, which had never been quenched, "You could pump as much life energy as you wanted into someone, but it would not be able to heal their body, only sustain their soul. The Soul Hunter told us that every body has a natural life span and nothing is able to extend it."
"But what about the machine that healed you?"
Susan scowled. "That cursed machine is beyond anyone's understanding, and this is different. We don't need to heal Marcus, just..." she searched for an appropriate expression, "recharge his batteries. At least that's what I think we're doing."
"But if we could just boost a patient for a few hours until they begin to heal themselves…"
"You are still a dreamer Stephen." Susan sighed. "Look. I'll let you question the Soul Hunter as much as you like; after he's done this soul replacement stuff. I don't want you annoying him before we find out if this works."
"Fine." The doctor reluctantly agreed. "I'll start preparing Marcus for the procedure tomorrow morning."
They lapsed into silence for a moment. Susan thought back to their first encounter with the Soul Hunters and Stephen's absolute denial in what they claimed they could do.
"When did you start believing in souls?" Susan could not resist a little dig at her friend.
"I've always believed in souls," Stephen replied, "Just not that it was something that could be physically captured."
"So why are you doing this?"
"Because you asked me to. If you think that this crazy scheme could revive Marcus, then I'll try it."
"Thank you." Susan whispered.
OoOoO
The next day, the vigil began. There was at least one, most often two and occasionally all three of the women Marcus had regarded as important to him outside the healing chamber. They watched as Stephen began the long process that could return the Ranger to full life and health.
First came the 'unfreezing' as Marcus' body was slowly brought up to temperature. This in itself took ten hours with Stephen monitoring everything so that he could connect the life support at just the right moment. The reversal of long term cryogenic freezing, especially on someone that had already 'died' had never been attempted, so every action was critical.
It was late the first evening when they were ready to transfer Marcus' body from the freezer and onto the operating table. Marie had just returned from putting William and Sofie to bed.
"They missed their story." She said to Susan.
"Oh God," Susan groaned. "I'm sorry."
"It's all right. I told them you were trying to wake up Grandpa."
"I'll go see them tomorrow." Susan promised.
Marie smiled and together they turned to watch the frantic bustle of healers and Stephen around the cryogenic freezer. Through the speaker they could hear the doctor barking out orders, then counting down to the lift. Together they heaved and a mass of black material appeared, to be almost flung upon the table. Marcus in full Ranger uniform, just as Susan had ordered it, was lying limp and lifeless, his pale skin a shocking contrast to his black hair and beard.
"Ventilator." Stephen snapped, and immediately one of the Minbari opened Marcus' mouth and forced a tube down into his windpipe.
"Open his clothes. Prepare to restart the heart."
Among the activity, Marie and Susan were motionless. They watched unmoving, hands grasped in solidarity and support for each other.
"Clear!" Stephen ordered. A second later, he hit the switch that sent a jolt of electricity through the Ranger's body. Marcus jumped, arching up as the muscles involuntarily contracted.
At the same moment, the watchers flinched. Marie stepped up to the glass, pressing her hands against it to be as close as she could get, sending out her will for her Father to live.
"Clear!" Stephen barked before the second jolt.
As the body contorted once more, Susan closed her eyes. She couldn't watch it; not again. She had managed to push back the memories of the medlab staff desperately working on him all those years ago. They had tried to restart his heart then, blasting his body time after time until she had thrown them all out. The whine of the heart monitor had remained stubbornly level then as it was now.
"Clear!"
Susan turned and ran blindly out of the room and right into Delenn.
"Susan?" she asked. "What's wrong?"
"I can't stay." She pushed past the Minbari, "I can't stand there and watch him die. Not again."
She ran into the night, not caring where, only stopping when her tears overwhelmed her. Sinking onto a bench, her crying continued until she felt someone settle onto the seat beside her and a hand take her own.
"Susan. What are you afraid of?" Delenn's calm voice soothed Susan. She looked into the face of the woman, concern written across her features. Susan marvelled at her compassion, always more anxious about others than herself, even after her own troubled life. She never needed to answer the question 'what do you want?' unless it was for someone else. And now she was worried about Susan, Anla'shok Na and terror of Earthforce, who had faced death herself without a second thought.
"What am I afraid of?" She did not understand the question.
"Susan, I have known you many years and only in times of personal fear do you become like this. So what are you afraid of? That Marcus will die; or that he will live?"
Susan stared. "Why would I be afraid that he would live?"
"Perhaps you are afraid that he will love you." Delenn smiled with understanding, "I know of your betrayals and your losses, but that is no reason to close your heart forever. Allow your self to be loved and you may find yourself loving in return. Recognising your soulmate is the most astounding moment of your life when everything is in perfect unity. Those moments come so rarely, that you must never miss one by refusing to listen."
Susan knew that Delenn was speaking of Sheridan when she talked of soulmates. They had only been together for twenty years, but she had never lamented that he had been taken from her.
Was Marcus Susan's soulmate? Would she be able to love him? Would he still love her?
"But I'm old!" Susan confessed her trepidation.
"You are not as old as you think." Delenn reassured her, "And souls do not see age. Do not worry on that account. Have courage Susan; you will not have to face this alone."
"But what if he dies?" Having discussed one possibility, Susan turn to the other, finding that she did not know which one she feared most.
"If he dies, then we gain the knowledge that his soul is at last free. Marie was correct when she told you that we said goodbye all those years ago."
"I haven't." Susan admitted. "I couldn't face it at the time. The thought that someone I cared for had again left me…"
"Then for that reason alone, we must proceed." Delenn said. "You cannot move forward in your life if your spirit is tied to the past. You kept Marcus between life and death because you did not want to life without him and because you are afraid to live with him. This has been unresolved for twenty-five years and you need an ending. You need to take just one of the paths laid before you."
"But I don't have the choice as to which one."
"That is as it should be."
Susan smiled and squeezed the hand in her own.
"Shall we return?" Delenn inquired. "Marie will be needing you."
OoOoO
Stephen had been successful in starting Marcus' heart, but it was only the machines that kept it going, along with his breathing.
"But there is no brain activity." He said.
"That is because there is no soul." The Soul Hunter stated.
Stephen shook his head in disbelief that he was still working with the alien. Susan stepped in.
"When can you replace his soul?" she asked.
"When the body is ready to accept it. I have begun feeding life energy into Marcus Cole and it will be some hours before that is complete."
"I also want to ensure that there is no long term damage from the freezing process." Stephen attempted to remain in control of the situation, "It is vital that there is no more strain on his heart."
And so they watched through the night, the heart monitor bleeping its steady rhythm, counter pointed by the whumph of the ventilator. The Soul Hunter sitting by his device, motionlessly watching the flow of life energy. The sun was rising when he spoke.
"It is time."
Stephen was awake in an instant and unfolded himself from the chair where he had slept. He swiftly checked the monitors then groggily organised his staff. Susan had been awake all night and only spoke to order a Ranger to fetch Delenn and Marie. The silence continued when they arrived, communication no longer necessary.
After a final inspection, Stephen nodded the go ahead to the Soul Hunter. The alien took the glowing soul sphere and placed it into his device. All eyes were breathlessly turned on the sphere. Its glow blazed brighter for a moment, then faded.
There was a sharp crack. The sphere imploded on itself.
"What's happened?" Marie almost shouted, panic rising in her eyes. "Ni'Fa?"
"Shhh." Susan put a supporting arm around Marie, hoping that she would not be able to feel her own heart thumping wildly. "It isn't over yet."
The seconds slowed indeterminably as they waited for a reaction.
Nothing seemed to be happening.
"I have synaptic activity." One of the healers announced.
"Heartbeat has strengthened." Came from another.
"And respiration."
Stephen looked from one monitor to the next in wonder. Taking a small light, he leaned over Marcus and opened one of his eyes. A few seconds later, he announced,
"Pupils are responsive." Then triumphantly announced, "We have him back!"
Whoops of joy and congratulatory hugs accompanied the frenzied work as Marcus was disengaged from the respirator and pacemaker.
But the celebrations were premature.
OoOoO
"What do you mean, he won't wake up." Susan demanded.
They were in Stephen's temporary office where the doctor was giving Susan and Marie an update on Marcus.
"Well he's in there, as far as I can tell. At least all the readings are normal, but he's in a coma."
"Is it a result of the freezing?" Marie asked.
"It could be, but when I asked the Soul Hunter if he considered this normal, all he said was, 'this is a tormented soul'."
"I'll kill him." Susan rose out of her seat. "No wonder they didn't mind giving him back."
She reached the door before Stephen stopped her,
"He's gone."
"What!"
"Once he'd done what ever it was he did, he left. He seemed quite anxious to get away."
"I'll bet." Susan growled. "Did he say anything else before he departed?"
"Only that 'sometimes the souls do not realise that they have been preserved and that this one may not know it has returned to its body'."
Susan frowned,
"Are you telling me that Marcus still thinks he is dead?"
"I don't know what to think." Stephen conceded, "I've done all that I can. Now it's up to him."
"Would it help if we talked to him?" Marie suggested.
"It could." Stephen nodded. "It's what is usually suggested in these cases and there has been a significant amount of success recorded."
Marie looked at Susan,
"Can I go first?"
OoOoO
They took turns during the days that followed. Marie chatted away for hours, or read and sang when she ran out of words. She even took William and Sofie, hoping for the same reaction as when Susan had been ill. Marcus' small box of possessions had been unpacked and the photos and books placed by his bedside, ready if he woke up. Noticing this, Susan found the Ranger pin she had safely kept through the long years and added it to the little collection.
Talking though was a problem for her. Seeing him lying so peaceful, but unnaturally quiet, she could think of nothing to say. She sat and studied his face. He hadn't aged as the rest of them had and it would be a shock to him when he woke up. Especially Marie. She had only been a girl when he left, but now she was grown up, older even than Marcus, with children of her own.
Would it be better if he didn't wake up? Susan wondered if it would be kinder to not bring him into a world where he would have twenty-five years of catching up to do. Having to see friends aged and to probably watch them die long before his own time came. Would it be fair to put him through that?
'What am I doing?' Susan suddenly thought to herself. 'I'm thinking about leaving him between life and death again. I'm still afraid that he will live.'
She looked up then at the sound of padding feet. Sofie ran into the room, clutching a book.
"Grandma!" the little girl cried as Susan picked her up, "There was a monster following me!"
"There are no monsters in Tuzanor." Susan soothed her granddaughter. "It was probably the wind. What are you doing here? You should be asleep. Isn't your Daddy back tomorrow?"
Sofie nodded, "You didn't read us a story again."
"I'm sorry, but your Mummy explained what we are doing."
Sofie nodded again. Susan settled her into a more comfortable position and pulled a blanket around her. The little girl had braved the dark to find her. For that, she deserved a story.
"So," Susan said, "What story did you bring?"
She looked at the title of the book. Sleeping Beauty.
"But you heard this not long ago." Susan was surprised. "Surely you don't want to hear it again?"
"I want Grandpa to hear it."
"Why?" Susan was intrigued.
"So that he knows he has to wake up."
Susan laughed, "But we don't have a princess to kiss him."
"You're the princess."
Susan was so astounded by this direct simple statement that for a moment she didn't know what to say.
"I would have thought that Delenn was the princess."
Sofie shook her head determinedly. "En'til'zha is the queen. You are the princess."
Susan marvelled at the reasoning of children as she opened the book and started to read. Sofie fell asleep before the end and Susan contacted Marie so she could collect her wandering daughter.
Once alone she thought over what Sofie had said. Could she do something to make Marcus wake up? She had been the reason he had given up his life and it had been her his soul had called out to. Perhaps he was waiting for her to call him back.
The two paths were in front of her and she had the chance to choose.
Gently she leaned over the still form of the man that had saved her life. Quietly she spoke the words she knew she had wanted to say all along.
"I love you Marcus. Please come back to me."
Then she lowered her head and placed her lips on his in a soft kiss.
End.
So that's it. Did I manage to find a logical and original way to bring Marcus back? Thanks for sticking with me everyone and thanks for all the lovely reviews (Red Wulf, Natters, etc.). Keep them coming. I've had so much fun writing this. I'm sorry I've left you on another cliff hanger, but I do have plans for the sequel, I just need a title that begins with 'Re..' Any suggestions?
If anyone out there wants to use the character of Marie, feel free. Just let me know so I can make sure you're not doing anything uncharacteristic with her.
Big bottles of virtual Brivari to you all. I hope to meet up again sometime.
"True Magic is done with the mind and the spirit. Chants and potions are just a way to focus the magic, but they will not work without the magic of your spirit. Every wizard that you may encounter has a vast imagination, and a mind that can fly free. You still have that great gift. When you go home, you can use your imagination to see this world and us. Your mind is free from all bounds. You can travel anywhere, meet anyone and do anything, all within your mind. That is the first gateway to magic." - Nala, Wizard of T'Tenneb.
Any comments to hilaryweston
Ranger Hilary.