Chapter Eleven: The Cold War and Détente

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A pattern emerged over the next few weeks, Hoshi and Malcolm hardly seeing one another, much less talking to one another. Without the use of the phase pistol, Malcolm made an effective spear to catch the fish that dared to swim where he hunted.

She watched him, keeping her secretive smile below the water. After his fumbling attempts to spear one or two fish, he'd leave. Watching her former security officer splash and curse in the water was her daily entertainment.

After he left, she would get the phase pistol out and pick off her lunch and dinner. She'd been lucky. Her pool was like a whirlpool, swimming with silvery fish and collecting things on the bottom. The major currents of the river led to this pool, the warm spring of water calming the violent ripples as soon as it neared its reach. That's how she'd managed to recover the phase pistol. The pool wasn't deep but he didn't need to know it.

Perfectly content with the status quo, she relaxed on a jutting shelf on the edge of the pool, pretending she was still treading water whenever he looked in her direction. Life was indeed good. She was her own person, self-sufficient and content. She'd taken her share of the ration packs and hidden them in the hollow of a tree deep in the surrounding woods. That way she had a selection of food for the next month.

Hoshi had no idea what she was going to do after that.

The thought that she would spend the rest of her life here with him woke her up at night. Her dreams varied. Some of them were her going about her daily routine with him watching. She'd even had a dream where she stunned him with her phase pistol and stole his fish. She'd actually woken up giggling after that dream.

Then there was the erotic dream – the one that woke her at all hours, the one that made her want to tie him up and have her wicked way with him. He'd used her in that manner, sans ropes, so why couldn't she use him?

She shook the absurd notion out of her head, her reverie broken as Malcolm cursed.

"Bloody hell!" he shouted at the fish. "Get back here!"

Caught in a fit of giggles, Hoshi took a deep breath and sank into her pool. Her eyes closed, she could feel the fish swim around her, accepting her as if she were one of their own. If she didn't need oxygen, she could fall asleep. After all, it would be a few more hours before Malcolm caught his first fish.

Hearing a muffled shout, Hoshi smiled. He was frustrated. Good! It served the bastard right! The ache in her lungs grew and she conceded defeat. She needed air.

The sight that greeted her as she broke the surface made her gasp. Malcolm was stumbling backwards into the waist-deep currents, yelling and waving at a six-foot-tall blue mass of fur.

"Run!" he yelled, jabbing at the creature which yowled in response, swiping its mammoth claws toward Malcolm and snapping the spear like it was a twig.

Taking a deep breath, Hoshi dove to the bottom of the pool, feeling the bottom for the familiar shape of the phase pistol. She opened her eyes, the silver streaks of the fish in a frenzy blinding her to the object she sought. She cried out soundlessly, needing to find the weapon and needing to save Malcolm. Her lungs felt like they would burst but she continued to search the bottom frantically. Finally her hand came in contact with the familiar metal and she grasped the handle and kicked the bottom of the pool, ascending quickly and saying a silent prayer that the pistol was waterproof.

Malcolm was downstream, shouting and splashing. It was as though he was dancing with the bear-like creature, drawing it away from her.

Swimming toward him, Hoshi started yelling at the animal.

The animal paid her no mind and lunged toward Malcolm.

The scream of pain lanced the air as Hoshi took aim and fired the pistol, hitting the mass of blue fur squarely in the back.

The animal collapsed and only the sound of the steady current could be heard.

"Malcolm!" she called, swimming toward the floating blue animal.

She heard him before she saw him as he broke the surface of the water. She swam toward him as he staggered toward the shore. "Malcolm! Are you okay?"

He didn't answer, coughs wracking his body. Stumbling onto the riverbank, he collapsed.

Hoshi caught up to him, rolling him onto his back. She gasped as she saw a nasty gash on his shoulder. Ripping her shirt off, she balled it up and pressed it against his wound. "God! Please don't die," she prayed.

--

"You bastard! Don't you dare leave me alone on this godforsaken planet!"

Malcolm frowned. Oh God! Is there no pleasing this woman?

"I didn't ask for you to distract the bear, you stupid ass! I can take care of myself. Wake up! I can't drag you back to camp by myself. I can't leave you."

Opening his eyes, he squinted. "I didn't ask you to," he grumbled, wincing as he tried to sit up.

"Just stay still and hold this," she instructed, pressing his hand against the remains of her shirt.

"What's wrong?" he asked, wondering why she was leaning over him virtually topless. Must be another dream.

"You're wounded." Hoshi stood and started to leave, but stopped and returned to kneel next to him. "You've got to stay awake, Malcolm. I've got to go get the med kit."

"Blue fuzz and teeth. It was heading straight for you. You're safe," he mumbled.

She looked at him and sprang up, taking off for the shuttle and med kit as fast as she could run. She didn't want to leave him alone, but she had to. She just hoped he didn't bleed to death before she got back.

--

Hoshi felt like she couldn't run fast enough. She skidded to a halt next to him and ran the medical scanner over him. His vitals were strong and the wound looked worse than it really was. She opened the kit and ran the scanner over the available medications, looking for the coagulant. The scanner beeped and she pulled the vial out of the tray and popped it into the hypospray, injecting the contents into Malcolm's neck.

He watched her as she ministered to him, his eyes glazed with pain as he regained his sensibilities. "I—I think I twisted my ankle."

Running the scanner down his leg, Hoshi winced. "You did better than twist it. You broke it." She shivered as a stale wind blew over them, reminding them of their curfew.

"My head hurts," he groaned.

Hoshi sighed as she ran the scanner over him again. "You have a concussion."

Malcolm grimaced as he shifted.

"You need to get up and lean on me," she instructed, trying to pull him up. "We've got to get back to the shuttle."

Malcolm groaned as he struggled to stand.

Ducking under his arm, she braced herself to accept his weight. "Serves you right. Next time don't play hero."

--

Malcolm winced, pulling away from Hoshi's touch. "Get away from me, you bloody nag! I can do it myself."

Ignoring him, Hoshi continued to bandage the wound. "You should have been a doctor, not a security officer. You are a lousy patient."

"You're not my ideal of a professional nurse, either!"

She pressed harder on the wound than she should have. "Look! We've got a long night ahead of us, so I suggest you sit back and shut up. It's not like you're going anywhere."

"I'll be bloody-well fine in the morning," Malcolm growled. "Just give me the med kit and go away."

Tugging the bandage in place, Hoshi sighed and knelt in front of him, her patience wearing thin. She took his foot in her hands and grabbed the casting material.

"God your hands are cold," he complained.

She read the directions on the casting material and ignored him.

He tried pulling his foot away from her and howled when she grabbed hold of his big toe and twisted the hell out of hit. "Leave me alone, you bloody sadist."

"Look, Commander Reed! Like it or not, we are stuck on this 'bloody' rock for the duration. I think it's a well-established fact that I hate your guts and you are equally enamored with mine. I could have just left your ass by the river to freeze, but I opted to drag your sorry carcass back here. If you want, I would be more than happy to shoot your ass and put you out of your miserable excuse of an existence." Hoshi jerked the rubber-like material over his foot and ankle, making sure the angle was right.

His eyes narrowed. "You've had the phase pistol all along." His tone was accusatory.

She didn't even try to deny it. "The whirlpool collects little gems like lost phase pistols, but I'm pretty sure we're not going to be as lucky this time around. I'm sure I was too far downstream for the current to have carried it to back to the pool."

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TBC