thanks for riding to the rescue, lancelot: We got to see Karen say this to Jack after her recovery in Glike. What about when Jack said it back to her?
Admiral Lisa Hayes Hunter may hold claim to a lot of firsts in the sisterhood of military women-first female Admiral in space, and the first woman to command a Super Dimensional Fortress, for starters-but Captain Karen Penn-Baker was the only woman I ever met to answer to the nickname, "Prince Charming." Or "Lancelot." It depended on the situation, really.
-Marie Crystal Phillips, Sisters in Arms
The end of a double shift most often found the worker stumbling home, unable to think of anything except sustenance and then bed, yet those were the furthest things from Karen Penn's mind. Her body ached after working twenty hours straight, but such was the life of a Sentinel aboard a barely-staffed Super-Dimensional Fortress. The Sentinels had sustained heavy losses on Spheris, as was sadly the norm as their war with the Invid Regent dragged on. They'd recoop, as always, but such losses meant triple the work for those still standing on the already-skeleton-crewed Ark Angel.
Still, Karen wasn't about to let something as trivial as exhaustion stop her from reaching her intended goal. It had been a week since Spheris' liberation! And yet she hadn't spoken with Jack Baker even once since their fateful (and almost fatal) encounter in that crystalline hive. Anxiety had made itself at home in her gut, and Karen had long since lost count of the number of times she'd checked on his status, both on the med portal and in person. Burak's attack had left him in critical condition-he'd suffered two broken ribs, a punctured lung, torn abdominal muscles, a perforated stomach, and severely lacerated intestines. In the days since the goring, Jack had been in and out of surgery twice already, and while he'd had a few moments of consciousness, doctors had kept him mostly sedated.
But today was different-today was the first day Karen had seen the 'awake/alert' notation added to his profile. Heartened by this update, she had already tried to squeeze in one visit with him on her first meal break, only to be beaten to the chase by the Admirals Hunter. Karen was a Lieutenant Commander in the Robotech Expeditionary Force, and a Sentinel to boot, not some lovesick bimbo-she understood and respected the fact that her superiors' questions regarding Jack's time with the traitorous Invid scientist Tesla had to take priority. At least the Hunters' report had been encouraging-he seemed to be back to his old self, if a very tired version on a long road to recovery. But none of that could erase the feeling of crushed hope, of melancholy, that had flared in her chest before she stamped it out. The reason for that might have confounded Karen once, but recent events were making it increasingly clear, and harder to deny.
Which was why, instead of heading for her bunk like everyone else in her shift, Karen instead found herself making not for the crew quarters but for sick bay. It was nearing the end of visiting hours (or what passed for visiting hours on a starship not held to the sunup/sundown laws of a planet), and she decided to make one last attempt before giving up and trying again tomorrow. Pausing just long enough to sign in, Karen bypassed the front desk and headed straight for the Intensive Care Unit, where Jack had been ever since he first got out of surgery.
As soon as she stepped through the unit doors, Karen saw she was in luck. Jack was at the back of the room, but he stirred and glanced up when he heard footsteps approaching. A shadow of uncertainty passed over his boyish features when he saw who it was before shifting to his trademark grin. "Hey, Penn."
His voice was quiet, and raspier than normal-a forced concession to both their location and his recently-extubated throat, still sore even though the breathing tube had been removed yesterday. But Karen had felt him stop breathing entirely in the back of Bela's Alpha, and it was music to her ears. Seeing Jack awake and talking, rather than unconscious and hooked up to a ventilator, eased something in her that she didn't know she had.
She was quickly jolted back to reality, though, when Jack pulled his oxygen mask down to talk to her. Seeing her folly in coming down here with questions that needed answers, and remembering her the fear she'd felt when he'd stopped breathing, Karen immediately scolded him, "Are you trying to suffocate yourself? Don't do that!"
But Jack was not to be dissuaded. "S'okay," he retorted, trying to put some force in his words. Judging by Karen's expression, he missed the mark by a mile and instead came across as petulant. Jack sighed, and gestured to his right side, which was nearest to the nurses' station. "I can handle it for a few minutes. Just come over here, so they don't ream me."
Karen couldn't help it-her desire to talk with him was too great and she gave in. Careful so as not to pull on all the various tubes and wires coming in and out of him, Karen approached the side of his bed and pulled the privacy curtain a little further. Then she got her first good look at Jack Baker since he'd been carried away from her in the hangar.
Now that she was up close, Karen could see the signs of strain on his features. Jack was paler than normal-too pale. There was very little pain medication to be had onboard, and what little there was, had to be used sparingly. The pinched look on his face and the overall tension he carried throughout his frame...Karen's lips thinned as she took in the way his arm curled protectively over his abdomen. Much as he tried to hide it under a maddening grin, Jack was definitely hurting.
Seeing all this, Karen pulled up a stool and leaned in closer so he wouldn't have to speak any louder than necessary. Grasping for a topic to start with that wouldn't be too charged, Karen was surprised when Jack beat her to the punch, asking her, "So how've you been, Penn?"
Karen was floored. After everything that had happened, he was asking her that? She stuttered, "Wha-me? I should be asking you that!" She poked him in the ribs. But gently, though, because as tumultuous as their relationship was, Karen didn't actually want to cause him any more pain. There'd been enough of that already.
Jack huffed a laugh, and then stiffened in pain. Karen tensed, berating herself, and without even realizing it, reached to intercept his hand as it came up to cradle the spot where his ribs had broken. He immediately squeezed her fingers, using her hand as an outlet until the wave passed over him.
In, out… "Ugh," Jack groaned, opening his eyes when he hadn't even realized he'd closed them in the first place. Karen's concerned face came swam back into view. Jack didn't like that frown on her, so he sought to make it go away. A tiny smile quirked his lips. "Just don't make me laugh."
It worked-Karen's shoulders relaxed and the frown fell away, replaced by a small smile of her own. "I guess laughter's not the best medicine in this case," she agreed. "On to a more serious topic then. How did your meeting with the Admirals go?"
That, at least, was easy. Breezily, Jack replied, "It went really well, actually." At seeing her confused look, Jack elaborated, "The Admirals set it up as a private meeting. Guess they didn't want anyone else to overhear somethin' they shouldn't. They used some kind of exam room, and it was the first time I got to leave this room in days!"
At that, Karen took a moment to wonder at the fact that Dr. Avilova, once a protege of Dr. Grant and thus immune to the power of those with higher rank, had agreed to move one of her critically injured patients at the request of two people who, for all intents and purposes, planned to interrogate him. But then, she supposed, the good doctor might have wanted to ensure that there was no other fallout from his stint with the Invid scientist. And speaking of fallout…
"So you're not in trouble or anything?"
Admiral Hunter may or may not have said something to this effect, but Karen had been so distracted by the news of Jack's progressing recovery that she might have missed some key details. She had to be sure.
Jack shook his head. "Nah. It'd all come down on Tesla, if he were here."
Tesla. That Invid slug of a scientist who'd caused this whole mess. Karen gritted her teeth and raised her hand to her temple, feeling the beginnings of a migraine brewing behind her eyes. If he were here right now, the Hunters wouldn't have needed to worry about meting out any disciplinary action-Karen would have taken care of it for them. But how much good would such an attempt have done? She'd spoken to Gnea and while the Praxian warrior had told her the basics, she'd kept the details to herself (unwilling, perhaps, to admit a weakness in falling prey to the crafty Invid scientist). Much as Karen understood the need for privacy, it also left her the dark about what specifically had happened.
"Penny for your thoughts?"
"Hmm?" Distractedly, Karen rubbed her temple a little harder. Perhaps if she rubbed hard enough, she could erase the images of what Tesla had wrought from her brain.
"I dropped you on your head pretty hard."
That was real concern in his voice, too. Jack was the one lying prone on a hospital bed but there he was, concerned about whether or not she'd hit her head. Of course he wouldn't know-he'd already been turning to grapple with Burak by the time she hit the ground, and hadn't seen how she'd tucked her chin to her chest to avoid a concussion. Karen shook her and gave him what she hoped was a reassuring smile. "I didn't hit my head, Jack." And you didn't drop me, either, was what she didn't say, though she would tell him that later, you were just trying to save my life, that's all.
Jack didn't look convinced, so Karen dropped her hand. That seemed to satisfy him. Then he blinked as he followed its path down, as if just realizing they were still connected at her other hand. He didn't make to pull away, though, so neither did she. If anything, it seemed to provide a little comfort.
Time slowed down for a moment, and they sat there in silence. Karen allowed it for a moment, before shaking herself out of it and remembering the other reason she had come down here. "Jack," she said quietly, "what happened with Tesla?"
Jack sighed and seemed to sink back a little in his bed. Karen shuffled closer and used her free hand to move the oxygen mask a little closer to his mouth. He took a few breaths before pushing it down and recounting the tale.
"I remember it," Jack began, and then cautioned her, "but most of it's kinda blurry."
Karen nodded-she'd expected as much. At her urging, Jack continued, "It's almost like watching a vid of someone else's life, with pieces missing-no thoughts or feelings. I think most of the time I was just telling him what was going on, or trying to get access, or grabbing stuff-fruit, I think-or just...doing nothing if he didn't need me. He never told us what any of it was for." Or if he had, he had wiped it from their minds. That was a frightening thought, but it was one he wouldn't put past the scheming scientist.
"Ya know what was the worst, though?" At the shake of her head, Jack continued, "Sometimes his concentration would slip and me or Gnea would wake up a little. Just not enough that we could actually do anything about it."
Unconsciously, Jack shivered. As he described the months he'd spent under Tesla's control-running interference, gathering supplies for him, attending to his own basic personal needs, or sitting in near catatonia during the times the scientist had no need of him, Karen was unwillingly reminded of the time she spent under the influence of Garudan hin. The exposure had been forced on her by the Invid and at times, it felt like the hin itself was forcing all manner of nightmarish unrealities to the surface. Although the experience was almost the polar opposite-nightmares compared to nothingness-Karen found their reactions to it were remarkably similar. It was the feeling of fighting someone else's grip on one's mind, body, and maybe even one's soul. When she relayed this thought to him, Jack just nodded. Now both of them understood what it was to suffer a mental violation.
"I'm not so sure about Burak, though," Jack added, a growl creeping into his voice. He looked up at Karen, a fiercer look on his face than she was used to seeing there. "He's been acting fishy with Tesla ever since Praxis. Like they were partners or somethin'."
"Or needed him for something else. Burak hasn't exactly been quiet about putting Peryton above all else. If he thought Tesla could make that happen..." mused Karen. The young buck had gotten progressively stranger as their campaign wore on, and even if it weren't for his most recent...transgression...the changes would still be alarming. "I'll keep an eye on him."
This, to Jack, was cause for alarm. The last time they'd faced down Burak, there'd been two of them, and he hadn't been injured at the time. Now, he couldn't even sit up, never mind guard Karen's back against the potentially-traitorous Perytonian. Fuzzy though his memories were, Jack distinctly remembered being in the hive, sweating at the thought of what Tesla-and Burak-wanted him to do to her. The urge to carry her away from the danger had been strong then, and it was strong now. He just couldn't actually do anything about it.
"I'd be careful about that if I were you. Can't have him looking at you the wrong way, too," Jack warned her, just a touch too hastily. He tried to inject some of his customary cockiness, to add some normality to the situation.
It worked. Karen raised her eyebrows. If he weren't already injured, she might have socked him one. As it was, she was sorely tempted. Right when she thought he might be letting go of his outdated assumptions about women...she flushed. "What, don't think I can look after myself, Baker?"
Jack saw the light change behind her eyes and he cast a wary glance at her free hand. She probably wouldn't hit him too hard, but still. "Course not, Penn," he drawled. "I already told the Hunters about it. I mean, s'great seein' you an' all, but I'd rather not have you end up next to me, if it's all the same to you."
And there it was-the real reason he didn't want her to keep an eye on Burak. Karen flushed again, but the indignation she'd felt before was gone. Jack Baker could be a masochistic moron sometimes, but he hid a heart of gold underneath that irritating exterior. Too bad he didn't show it more often.
That didn't mean she wasn't going to keep an eye on Burak, though. Discreetly, of course. And maybe make the effort to spend as much time as she could in sick bay. Just to be sure he didn't come back down and try to finish the job. If he did, he wouldn't have time to regret the decision. Doing harm to a fellow Sentinel was a dark thought, but if Burak was already willing to make that decision…
Shaking herself out of those unpleasant thoughts, Karen brought herself back to the present. Jack was still watching her, and she belatedly realized he was waiting for her to say something. She cleared her throat. "I'll be careful," was what she promised him, although she made a mental note to talk to the Hunters about her concerns as soon as possible. That seemed to appease him and he nodded, settling back against his pillow with relief. The conversation seemed to have taken a lot out of him, and he didn't have a whole lot to begin with. With a start, Karen realized she'd been perched on the stool beside him for nearly half an hour. They'd need to wrap this up soon but judging by their still-linked hands, and by the fact that Jack was seemingly unaware that he'd run his thumb across her knuckles several times, neither was quite ready to stop talking yet, either.
Karen thought back to the start of the conversation. "So-how about you? How long are they gonna keep you locked up here? Or are you gonna be back to your favorite past time, driving me up the wall?"
Jack shrugged as best he could while lying down and grimaced. Dr. Avilova had been quite frank about the damage he'd incurred, and the amount of recovery time he was facing. "Dunno. Haven't even had a bite to eat yet. Guess I'll just have to see. Let me tell ya, being a matador sure ain't all it's cracked up to be."
At that, Karen snorted a laugh, but the laughter died in her throat when she saw him painfully fight back a physical response to her reaction. No laughing, right, even if it was his fault this time. Serious topics only. This was, she thought, the exact opposite of what she'd been taught about visiting a patient in the hospital. "So besides the obvious; there are no...complications...from Tesla?"
"Not if you don't count missing a few months, no."
Then Jack appeared to brighten up, and grinned at her. "But hey-it wasn't all bad, though!" he said, almost to himself. He wasn't quite able to meet her eyes when he added, quietly, "There were one or two moments that stood out."
Karen knew exactly which ones he was talking about, too. They'd been on her mind ever since they happened. "Jack…" This was...that word, that was...a complicated topic for her. What with her mother, and her father's reaction to that...but what could she say? There was a part of her that wasn't ready, but was it ever going to be ready? What if they ran out of time, as they very nearly did last week?
"I know, I know," he grumbled. Conversations like the one they were dancing around weren't exactly Jack Baker's forte, either. This seemed to be one of the rare moments they were on the same wavelength, though, and Jack understood what she was trying to say, or not to say. After all, he got it too-life after Dolza and Khyron hadn't exactly been easy, and the loss of his family had taught him a few hard-learned lessons. "Just...sayin' it without sayin' it, is all. In case you wanted to know."
Squeezing his hand, Karen said softly, "I did."
Though Jack, being Jack, couldn't resist adding, "You do give Prince Charming a run for his money, though."
At that, Karen laughed again, despite her best efforts not to. "Jack! Weren't you the one telling me not to make you laugh?"
Grinning impishly, the red-headed pilot shrugged dismissively-he did a pretty good job of it too, for someone who was largely immobile at present time. "Didn't say anything about not making you laugh, though." And, with his threshold for heartfelt conversations having been reached, "Did I ever tell you about the time when…?"
And so they passed another half hour, with Jack telling her humorous stories of his days in the academy, and before. Karen was charmed, really, that he was going out of his way to cheer her up, weakened as he was, even though she knew it was almost as much for his benefit as it was for her. Eventually, though, they had to wrap it up-she'd spent an hour down there and the nurse kept shooting glares their way, each one more severe than the last. And Jack was fading, his voice getting raspier and the pauses between words getting longer each time as he required more and more rest breaks.
Finally, the nurse took a step towards them, and Karen took that as her cue to leave. "Time for me to turn in," she decided, standing up and working a crick out of her neck and back. Those stools were murder. "Unlike you, Sleeping Beauty, some of us have work tomorrow. I'll swing by after my shift, if I haven't passed out already from doing your share of the work. Get some rest, 'cause you better be up and running by the time we get to Peryton. Or I'll really be pissed if I have to do your share of the fighting too. Got it?"
Jack nodded sleepily, eyes already closing. "Lookin'...forward to it," he murmured, though his words were now muffled by the oxygen mask Karen replaced over his nose and mouth. She hovered for a moment longer, watching his breaths begin to even out, before turning to leave.
"Hey, Karen?"
Karen turned back, and huffed in exasperation. Jack was looking at her and had pulled the oxygen mask down again. A grin was playing about his lips.
"What?"
That grin, which she had seen so many times over the past several years, blossomed into something Karen had rarely witnessed-a real, true smile.
"Thanks for riding to the rescue, Lancelot."
An answering smile, just as real and true as the one that currently graced his features, bloomed across her own. "You're welcome, Jack. Good night."