"So what is this plan?" Kristin asked the teens.
Call Node3, ask them to send Nick and Julianna . If you tell them a little about what happened, they can bring the parts we might need to repair the interface.
Nathan started to shake his head. "SeaQuest is about about to dock for repairs. I can make them stay away from you and you can hide in the systems, but I won't be able to justify them being here."
And what if they find me in the systems and think I'm a virus? They'll want to run diagnostics after York's tampering.
"Do you think you can leave the ship?" Kristin put in. "I mean, would you be able to travel through the internex to the Node? I can transport your body as your doctor, without them asking to many questions."
I thought about that when I first figured out what was going on, I might get trapped in a firewall. I have no idea what it would do to me.
"Do you have a spare hard drive?" Jayde asked. "We could download you into it and bring you along that way."
Yes! Of course! There should be one in my room. Look under jeans with a pair of my sneakers on top of them. Ask Ben if he has has a portable vid-screen too.
Jayde nodded and left the room at a jog. Nathan turned back to the screen after watching her leave. "Are you sure this is safe?"
No, but what else are we going to do?
"Your body will be ok like this for quite some time, with a feeding tube and an IV for fluids, we only have to worry about muscle atrophy." Kristin told them hesitantly. "We could wait for repairs to be done and then ask for help in a more controlled setting."
What muscles? Kristin chuckled in spite of herself. Who else could help with this?
"I don't know Lucas, but..."
Doc, please, I really want to get out the computer, I don't even think I'll want to play on one for a long time after this.
"Alright, but if there are any signs of trouble, we are coming back here. Doctor's orders."
Yes, ma'am!
It was Nathan' turn to look troubled, "Lucas, you think you can completely trust the kids at the node?"
Nick and Julianna, yes, I'd trust them with my life. Anyone else, I just don't know. If I ask them to keep this secret, they will though.
"I'll send Ben along with Kristin, and I'm sure Jayde will want to come as well." Nathan decided.
Ben? That's all?
"I'd send Tim too, but he's still pretty bad. And I may need him for more repairs." Kristin narrowed her eyes, and Nathan held up a placating hand. "I won't push him to hard. Ben will be able to offer you all protection if need be."
"What else could happen?" Kristin wanted to know.
It's never a good idea to ask that.
"Point taken." Kristin said, sighing.
Jayde came back carrying the small metal box for Lucas' consciousness. "I ran into Ben on the way, he's bringing the vid-screen." She set the hard drive on a rolling table next to his body. "So how do we do this?"
I already know it's completely unformatted, so hopefully I'll fit in there. Otherwise, we'll have to get a bigger one. I'd rather not be split into a bunch of flash-drives. Plug it into this vid-screen, I should be able to get into it from there.
Jayde quickly plugged in the drive and waited for Ben to bring the extra screen. Soon after, he arrived. "So why are you pillaging my goods?"
I'm taking a little field trip.
"Where are you going?" He asked with a raised eyebrow, watching Jayde set up the screen.
We are going to Node3 for help to get me back into my body.
"Oh... good idea. Those kids know almost as much as you do. Wait... we?"
Nathan nodded, "you'll be escorting them."
"I thought I was getting shore leave." Ben huffed. "Now I have to waste my war stories on teenagers?"
Did your stories ever work before?
"Only some of the time, but when they did..."
"Ben... I think that's enough." Kristin's not so mild reprimand brought him up short. His face fell in a small pout.
Ok, here we go... The screen blinked to blank and the others in the room held their breath. Can you see me? Asked the new screen.
"We have you Kiddo." Nathan told him. "I'll tell them to get the shuttle ready. You better pack some things, you may be there for a while."
After watching the captain leave, Jayde turned back to the screen. "How is it in there? Is it cramped?"
I'm not sure cramped is the right word. It is a really strange feeling. I was in the systems for almost a whole day, and now, it's just me in here. It feels like it should be a small space, but I don't feel physically cramped, just mentally. I can see and hear you guys, but take that away for too long, and I might go a little crazy.
"Take a nap." Ben suggested.
How?
"Uh... maybe we just won't turn off the screen."
Jayde rolled her eyes, "what if we put some music in there? My MP3 player has over five hundred songs on it, that will keep you occupied when we have to sleep or if the battery dies on the screen."
Good idea, I just hope we like the same kind of music.
"It's a little bit of everything, you should be able to find something you like. Don't worry, now that Justin Beiber's music has been outlawed, we can all rest easier."
After Kristin carefully double checked the straps that held Lucas' body to the gurney in the shuttle, her and Jayde settled in. The young woman set the small vid-screen on her lap with the hard drive safely in a waterproof bag. The only opening was for the wire attaching to the screen. If they started taking on water, it would only take seconds to unplug it and close the bag fully to protect the important device.
"This is your captain speaking, today we will be taking a four hour trip to visit the venerated Node3. Please ensure your trays are in the upright and locked positions." Ben called from the controls. Jayde and Kristin shook their heads at each other and chose to ignore him for duration of the journey.
"Are you able to listen to the music or just see the words?" Jayde asked the screen.
I can listen to it, you have some good stuff in here.
"I told you." She smiled broadly, and settled into the bench. Kristin caught sight of her smile and spoke up.
"I believe I'll make sure Mr. Krieg isn't going to crash us. Can you keep an eye on his vitals?"
Jayde nodded and returned to the screen. "Think that was her giving us some privacy." She whispered before smiling again.
Oh... so... um... what do you want to talk about?
"Why don't you tell me how you got onto the ship? You said it was a special case."
Um, it's kind of depressing and full of drama. What about you? I heard you kicked a lot of ass, where did you learn that?
"Oh... that's depressing too." She went silent for a few moments.
Ok, so... have you seen anything interesting lately?
Jayde started to laugh, "yeah, a bit."
Ben was trying to sneakily look over his shoulder when he heard the teen girl giggle a few times. "Are you sure it's a good idea to leave them alone?"
Kristin scrutinized him closely before responding. "What could they possibly do?"
He shrugged, "they're teenagers, they'll find a way." Kristin laughed and shook her head, but she also started taking glimpses into the back of the shuttle. "So what did you tell Nick and Julianna this was about?"
"I told them Lucas needed their help and absolute secrecy. I didn't explain he was in a coma, so we'll have to bring them onto the shuttle to show them how serious this is." Kristin curled her legs in the seat, resting her head on the side. "From what Lucas has told me, they are good people. They were a little led astray by that Mycroft character, but they did what was right in the end."
"I just hope Julianna doesn't get pissed that Lucas met someone else. Even if he has to talk to her through a vid-screen."
Kristin raised her brow, "did they brake up under bad circumstances? Lucas didn't tell me much about it."
"Well..." Ben hesitated, "after they got caught together, her parents threatened to pull her out of the node if she didn't dump him."
"Why ever would they do that?"
He flashed an embarrassed smile, "Lucas thinks they were worried about her getting pregnant and messing up her future."
"Oh... they're much to young for that, but I would hope he's smart enough to prevent it in the future."
Ben nodded, "he was, I gave him a condom before they got together."
"You what?!"
