Harper walked slowly onto the command deck. Dylan stood at the helm and seemed to stare into empty space. Trance stood still for a moment as if she were thinking. She turned around and smiled. "Hi, Harper," she said cheerfully. Dylan whipped around and tried to maintain a serious composure. He was glad Harper was up and around, but didn't want to show it.
"Feeling any better, Mr. Harper?" he asked seriously.
"Fine hello to you too, Dylan," Harper laughed. "As a matter of fact, yes, I am feeling just a little bit better. This Fandan guy is the real thing. He still refuses to tell me who planted the virus and why."
"The same goes for me. Unfortunately he refuses to say much about anything except your condition." Dylan thought for a moment. "He did say that whoever planted the virus meant for me to catch it and that if he hadn't seen you eat the stuff, you would've been dead within a couple of days. He said you're not quite out of the danger zone yet, but you're on the verge of breaking out of it." Dylan half expected a sarcastic reply to what he had just said from Harper, but it never came. There was an awkward pause, and then Beka cleared her throat.
"Believe it or not, Tyr has actually been worried about you, Harper. He hasn't intentionally shown it, but he's stopped by a couple of times while you're sleeping to interrogate Fandan about what's going on with you." She saw the half smile on Harper's face and laughed to herself.
* * *
Tyr was, of course, in the exercise room lifting weights. Harper slipped quietly into the room and leaned against a wall. The sound of the heart monitor Tyr wore annoyed him. Finally the sound drove him to say something. "Will you shut that stupid thing off?" he said suddenly. "I mean, aren't Nietzscheans supposed to be able to sense their heartbeat or something?"
Tyr nearly dropped the weights when he heard Harper's voice. He set the weights down and stared at Harper with mean eyes. "So you're alive…" he said slowly. "How many times are you going to have near-death experiences?"
"I don't know. I'm kind of getting the feel for heading towards the light," Harper said sarcastically. "Have you seen my cat?"
"You mean the gray ball of pathetic fur that insists on staring at me for hours on end?" Tyr said angrily. Harper nodded. "He's sleeping in the corner." Tyr waved his hand toward the corner on his left. Sherlock was curled up into a ball with his nose tucked neatly under his tail. "I have to admit, that thing can be entertaining at times," Tyr said with a faint smile.
"Sometimes I even feel like he knows what we're saying," Harper said as he picked up the cat. "It's like he's listening to every word and he understands it, he just can't say anything back."
"And I think you're insane," Tyr said blandly.
"Harper, you need to get back to the med deck," Rommie said when she walked in the room. "Fandan said you've been out for too long and you're due for your next shot."
"Great…" Harper said. "My arm is still sore from the last one."
"Yes, and the rest of the crew, myself included are enjoying the afterthought of the vaccination." Tyr showed Harper the slight bruising on his right shoulder. Harper gave a quirky little smile and strolled out of the room. Rommie was right behind him, the same smile on her own face.
"It's nice to see you're feeling better," Rommie said. "You had me worried for a moment."
"Rommie cares about me?" Harper sounded shocked. He never knew Rommie ever got worried about him. Rommie just rolled her eyes and sighed. "Rom Doll, I never knew you had such strong human emotions."
"I never said I was agonizing over you being sick. I said I was worried. After all, if you were to die, who would take care of me when I'm broke?" Rommie smiled and laughed inside.
"Ha, ha," Harper said. "You're funny too, did you know that?" He stopped in the middle of the corridor and leaned against a wall.
"Harper?" Rommie had concern in her voice.
Harper shook his head and started walking again. "Just got a little dizzy, that's all," he explained. "I'm fine." Beka gave him a look and kept walking.
When they reached the med deck, Fandan was sitting on one of the beds reading a flexi. He had a look of concern on his face, but he shook it off and put on a smile for Harper. "Ready for your next shot?" he asked cheerfully.
"Sock it to me, Doc," Harper joked. He rolled up his sleeve and held out his arm for Fandan. Fandan gave him the shot carefully and walked away. "I sure hope this really works," Harper said. "That last shot seems to be wearing off or something, 'cause I'll tell you, I was dizzy on the way here." Fandan turned fast and looked at him.
"You were?" he asked grimly. "How about your symptoms, are they going away at all?"
"They did, but they seem to want to haunt me." Harper was getting worried. He didn't like the tone of voice Fandan was using. "Is there something wrong, Fandan?"
"Yeah, what's going on? Speak," Beka demanded.
"I'm sure it's nothing. Maybe it just takes longer for the cure to work in the human body. Perhaps Harper's weak immune system is causing the cure to work slower." Fandan rambled on in thought to himself. Beka and Harper stood and watched him, but didn't stay long. They decided to return to the command deck.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"Harper, did you figure out what's wrong with the communication system?" Rommie asked kindly.
Harper came out of the kind of trance he was in and wiped the sweat off his brow. "Yeah, it's all fixed," he replied quickly.
"What was wrong with it?"
"Something was wrong with the wiring that kept you from sending out any signals whatsoever. It didn't take me long to fix it."
"Don't brag, Harper. I get confused when there's something wrong with me," Rommie made an excuse. The truth was that she wanted to give Harper something to do. He seemed bored. None of the rest of the crewmembers would let him do anything on his own. Now his condition seemed to be getting worse again, and she thought about doing the same. "Harper, are you okay?"
"Yeah, just feeling a little tired is all." Harper gave a fake yawn and stretched his arms. "Is there anything else that needs to be done?"
"No." Rommie stared at him for a minute. Her sensors told her that his temperature was no longer lowering. "Aren't you due for your next shot yet?"
"Yeah, actually I am." Harper started to walk out of the command deck. He could tell Rommie was monitoring him, and he didn't like it. He heard Rommie's footsteps behind him and looked over his shoulder. "I can get there myself, Rommie. Thanks for the concern, though." Rommie stopped following him when he turned a corner.
"Fandan," she said into her comm. link, "Keep an eye out for Harper. He's acting kind of strange and his fever is coming back."
"Sure thing, Andromeda." His response was made hastily and he sounded frustrated. She dismissed her suspicion and went back to work.
* * * * *
Harper passed Trance on his way to the med deck. He politely smiled and kept walking. He didn't want her to figure out that he was feeling sick again. She stopped when she saw the look in his eyes. "Harper, what's wrong?" she asked.
"What? Nothing's wrong. Why does everybody keep asking me that?" He was getting frustrated and he wanted to get his shot and go to bed.
"Maybe it has something to do with the fact that you don't look too good," Trance replied angrily. "Maybe you should show a little gratitude to everybody because we care about you."
"Fine!" Harper shouted. "Thank you very much, Trance. I really appreciate the concern! Now if you don't mind, I'd like to go get my shot and go to bed! Is that okay with you, Trance?" He took a deep breath and held his head in his hands. Trance stood in awe at his anger. She fought back a tear in her eye and walked away from him. She bumped into Tyr, who stared at her strangely as she ran away.
"I heard that whole thing, boy," he said to Harper. "I'm personally on her side."
"Oh, are you going to give me a speech about gratitude now, too?"
Beka turned a corner whistling a tune. "Hi, Harper. Hi, Tyr," she said cheerfully. Then she noticed the look on Harper's face. "What's wrong with you, Harper?" At that, Harper fell unconscious to the floor.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"Feeling any better, Mr. Harper?" he asked seriously.
"Fine hello to you too, Dylan," Harper laughed. "As a matter of fact, yes, I am feeling just a little bit better. This Fandan guy is the real thing. He still refuses to tell me who planted the virus and why."
"The same goes for me. Unfortunately he refuses to say much about anything except your condition." Dylan thought for a moment. "He did say that whoever planted the virus meant for me to catch it and that if he hadn't seen you eat the stuff, you would've been dead within a couple of days. He said you're not quite out of the danger zone yet, but you're on the verge of breaking out of it." Dylan half expected a sarcastic reply to what he had just said from Harper, but it never came. There was an awkward pause, and then Beka cleared her throat.
"Believe it or not, Tyr has actually been worried about you, Harper. He hasn't intentionally shown it, but he's stopped by a couple of times while you're sleeping to interrogate Fandan about what's going on with you." She saw the half smile on Harper's face and laughed to herself.
* * *
Tyr was, of course, in the exercise room lifting weights. Harper slipped quietly into the room and leaned against a wall. The sound of the heart monitor Tyr wore annoyed him. Finally the sound drove him to say something. "Will you shut that stupid thing off?" he said suddenly. "I mean, aren't Nietzscheans supposed to be able to sense their heartbeat or something?"
Tyr nearly dropped the weights when he heard Harper's voice. He set the weights down and stared at Harper with mean eyes. "So you're alive…" he said slowly. "How many times are you going to have near-death experiences?"
"I don't know. I'm kind of getting the feel for heading towards the light," Harper said sarcastically. "Have you seen my cat?"
"You mean the gray ball of pathetic fur that insists on staring at me for hours on end?" Tyr said angrily. Harper nodded. "He's sleeping in the corner." Tyr waved his hand toward the corner on his left. Sherlock was curled up into a ball with his nose tucked neatly under his tail. "I have to admit, that thing can be entertaining at times," Tyr said with a faint smile.
"Sometimes I even feel like he knows what we're saying," Harper said as he picked up the cat. "It's like he's listening to every word and he understands it, he just can't say anything back."
"And I think you're insane," Tyr said blandly.
"Harper, you need to get back to the med deck," Rommie said when she walked in the room. "Fandan said you've been out for too long and you're due for your next shot."
"Great…" Harper said. "My arm is still sore from the last one."
"Yes, and the rest of the crew, myself included are enjoying the afterthought of the vaccination." Tyr showed Harper the slight bruising on his right shoulder. Harper gave a quirky little smile and strolled out of the room. Rommie was right behind him, the same smile on her own face.
"It's nice to see you're feeling better," Rommie said. "You had me worried for a moment."
"Rommie cares about me?" Harper sounded shocked. He never knew Rommie ever got worried about him. Rommie just rolled her eyes and sighed. "Rom Doll, I never knew you had such strong human emotions."
"I never said I was agonizing over you being sick. I said I was worried. After all, if you were to die, who would take care of me when I'm broke?" Rommie smiled and laughed inside.
"Ha, ha," Harper said. "You're funny too, did you know that?" He stopped in the middle of the corridor and leaned against a wall.
"Harper?" Rommie had concern in her voice.
Harper shook his head and started walking again. "Just got a little dizzy, that's all," he explained. "I'm fine." Beka gave him a look and kept walking.
When they reached the med deck, Fandan was sitting on one of the beds reading a flexi. He had a look of concern on his face, but he shook it off and put on a smile for Harper. "Ready for your next shot?" he asked cheerfully.
"Sock it to me, Doc," Harper joked. He rolled up his sleeve and held out his arm for Fandan. Fandan gave him the shot carefully and walked away. "I sure hope this really works," Harper said. "That last shot seems to be wearing off or something, 'cause I'll tell you, I was dizzy on the way here." Fandan turned fast and looked at him.
"You were?" he asked grimly. "How about your symptoms, are they going away at all?"
"They did, but they seem to want to haunt me." Harper was getting worried. He didn't like the tone of voice Fandan was using. "Is there something wrong, Fandan?"
"Yeah, what's going on? Speak," Beka demanded.
"I'm sure it's nothing. Maybe it just takes longer for the cure to work in the human body. Perhaps Harper's weak immune system is causing the cure to work slower." Fandan rambled on in thought to himself. Beka and Harper stood and watched him, but didn't stay long. They decided to return to the command deck.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"Harper, did you figure out what's wrong with the communication system?" Rommie asked kindly.
Harper came out of the kind of trance he was in and wiped the sweat off his brow. "Yeah, it's all fixed," he replied quickly.
"What was wrong with it?"
"Something was wrong with the wiring that kept you from sending out any signals whatsoever. It didn't take me long to fix it."
"Don't brag, Harper. I get confused when there's something wrong with me," Rommie made an excuse. The truth was that she wanted to give Harper something to do. He seemed bored. None of the rest of the crewmembers would let him do anything on his own. Now his condition seemed to be getting worse again, and she thought about doing the same. "Harper, are you okay?"
"Yeah, just feeling a little tired is all." Harper gave a fake yawn and stretched his arms. "Is there anything else that needs to be done?"
"No." Rommie stared at him for a minute. Her sensors told her that his temperature was no longer lowering. "Aren't you due for your next shot yet?"
"Yeah, actually I am." Harper started to walk out of the command deck. He could tell Rommie was monitoring him, and he didn't like it. He heard Rommie's footsteps behind him and looked over his shoulder. "I can get there myself, Rommie. Thanks for the concern, though." Rommie stopped following him when he turned a corner.
"Fandan," she said into her comm. link, "Keep an eye out for Harper. He's acting kind of strange and his fever is coming back."
"Sure thing, Andromeda." His response was made hastily and he sounded frustrated. She dismissed her suspicion and went back to work.
* * * * *
Harper passed Trance on his way to the med deck. He politely smiled and kept walking. He didn't want her to figure out that he was feeling sick again. She stopped when she saw the look in his eyes. "Harper, what's wrong?" she asked.
"What? Nothing's wrong. Why does everybody keep asking me that?" He was getting frustrated and he wanted to get his shot and go to bed.
"Maybe it has something to do with the fact that you don't look too good," Trance replied angrily. "Maybe you should show a little gratitude to everybody because we care about you."
"Fine!" Harper shouted. "Thank you very much, Trance. I really appreciate the concern! Now if you don't mind, I'd like to go get my shot and go to bed! Is that okay with you, Trance?" He took a deep breath and held his head in his hands. Trance stood in awe at his anger. She fought back a tear in her eye and walked away from him. She bumped into Tyr, who stared at her strangely as she ran away.
"I heard that whole thing, boy," he said to Harper. "I'm personally on her side."
"Oh, are you going to give me a speech about gratitude now, too?"
Beka turned a corner whistling a tune. "Hi, Harper. Hi, Tyr," she said cheerfully. Then she noticed the look on Harper's face. "What's wrong with you, Harper?" At that, Harper fell unconscious to the floor.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *