CH17 (98)
It was now 2 months later:
This time Madison was in medical lying on a bed screaming every few minutes with a lot of heavy breathing in between.
The next contraction came and Madison squeezed Shawn's hand as hard as she could. Shawn to his credit only winced. "You're doing great babe."
Another contraction. "I SWEAR, YOU EVER TOUCH ME AGAIN AND I'LL BREAK BOTH YOUR LEGS!"
Kate pats Shawn who was losing circulation in his hand. "Don't worry, she doesn't mean it. I said something similar the last two times." Kate assures him.
Madison's next contraction. "Oh I meant every word!" Getting Kate to just shake her head when Shawn looked at her.
Then Lucy interrupts them. "A shuttle just landed." Which got everyone's attention, even Madison.
"I'll go." Rick tells them and kisses Kate and heads for the landing zone.
"Captain Zhukov, it's good to finally see someone." Rick shakes his hand.
"I know were late, sorry. However I did bring a cargo ship with me, and I've got satellites to put into orbit." Zhukov informs him.
"Excellent! But we need some help. Can you have your ship's doctor come down immediately?" Rick wanted someone to look at Kate and maybe help Madison first.
"Of course, is there a problem?" Zhukov to his credit was now worried.
"Madison, our only doctor is in labor, has been for a few hours now. Plus Kate had a major injury the day after Roy left us." Rick informs him hoping he'll hurry.
The look of shock on his face told Rick all he needed to know. "We'll do it now before the next shuttle is loaded." And he goes back into his shuttle to contact his ship.
15 minutes later another shuttle lands next to the one Zhukov brought down. "I'm Dr. Gilligan, I'm told your doctor is in labor." He had a lady who was probably a nurse behind him.
"Gilligan! Seriously?" Rick's mouth fell on the ground.
"Yes, …. why?" It was his name. What was so strange about that?
Trying to keep a straight face. "Nothing, medical is this way." Rick waves his arm. And snorts after the doctor and the nurse make it past him.
Zhukov follows with Rick. "Where is everyone?" They hadn't seen anyone since they landed.
"It is harvest day and the whole colony is out in the gardens, even my daughters." Rick explains.
Turns out the nurses had everything under control and Dr. Gilligan barely said a word until Madison was holding her baby boy. "You have a beautiful baby boy. Nice work ladies."
"You two picked a name for him yet?" Kate asks them.
"Mathew James Murphy." Madison tell them all.
"Matt, sounds perfect." Rick was smiling.
"I'm told there was an injury?" Dr. Gilligan was interested in moving on to the next problem. It was going to be a very busy stay for him since he would be the one giving the colonists physicals since their doctor was not available. Likely for a month at least.
Rick started pointing at Kate, getting Kate to slap at his hand. Kate took a deep breath. "That would be me." Kate was tired of being poked and prodded.
"Lucy, make sure he sees everything." Madison points out, getting Kate to glare at her for that comment.
Dr. Gilligan spent the next two hours with Kate, going over everything Madison had done since Rick had carried her into medical.
"Not bad, considering what your Doctor has to work with, this is impressive work." Gilligan had been looking at what Lucy was showing him. He hadn't actually looked at Kate yet.
"Can you lay down for me; I want to look at that leg." Pulling up Kate's pant leg after she does lay down.
Using his hands he starts feeling Kate's leg but doesn't say anything. Then he switches to looking at the good leg. "Lucy I need to you put up a split screen of her good calf area and the injured area."
Dr. Gilligan goes back to viewing the monitor and uses his finger to tap the screen, then starts mumbling to himself.
"Something on your mind?" Kate finally can't take it.
He turns to look at Kate. "Hhhmm? … Oh I was wondering if reconstruction surgery would return your leg to looking more normal." Dr. Gilligan goes back to looking at the screen.
"Normal, what do you mean normal?" He had Kate's attention now. What does it take to get him talking.
"There is a doctor on Tellus that is perfecting a technique to help people with limb damage. Think of people who have suffered accidents in train accidents or something falling and crushing a leg, or both.
He's researching a method similar to the standard procedure that your doctor has done for you. His method tries to do for the so called fat material what she has done for your muscle area.
Last I knew it wasn't yet available, but it sounded promising. If he gains clearance he should be ready for testing in a year or two. I don't understand the technique involved, however it is meant to help those people who have been injured in the past.
How long ago was your injury?" Gilligan asks. He's thinking the older it is the less likely it will work.
"About 6 months ago I guess. Maybe a little longer. Why?" Was that was too long ago?
"Hhhmm, 2 months back to Tellus, 2 months back to here, probably 6 months till another ship comes here." Gilligan is trying to think ahead and how the timing would work.
"We're anticipated to be here for the next 1-1/2 years, then go back to Ariel." Kate explains.
"1-1/2 years. That might be good timing. He may be ready for testing by then. Ariel is only one month from Tellus. If you're willing to go to Tellus when he is ready for testing, you may want to travel to Tellus instead of Ariel to undergo the procedure." Gilligan is assuming he will be ready for testing by then.
"How long is the procedure?" Meaning how long will she be on Tellus?
"Unfortunately I don't know the answer to that question. But when you are ready to leave here you might want to go to Tellus instead if you are interested in the procedure." Gilligan advises.
"Is there a way for information about it to be sent on the next ship so Madison can review it and tell me what she thinks of it?" Kate wanted someone to see it first. She wasn't going to be a guinea pig.
"I think that can be arranged. However your progress looks good. Keep in mind this process will not increase your ability, it is purely cosmetic. However think of a person who has had their leg crushed but not lose it.
What do you have left? Which would you rather have? A leg that looks real but does nothing more for you than an artificial leg that you strap on. Keeping in mind that the artificial leg that you strap on has its own problems." Gilligan points out.
"So I will be adding fake parts if I go thru with this?" Kate was thinking it was like a boob job. Part her and part fake.
"Oh no, it will be real. The really tricky part about his procedure is getting all those little blood vessels to connect and heal. Not to mention his method to allow you to feel. You will be able to feel when someone touches it, or if it's hot or cold." Gilligan confirms it will not be some plastic part that is added on.
"It sounds nice, but I'd still like for Madison to read about it." Kate liked the sound of it. Madison was giving her muscles and this could give her everything else.
"I think that can be arranged. …. It has been a pleasure meeting you detective Castle. You and your family's ability to start these colonies for all of us have not gone un-noticed. …. Well you are free to go detective." Gilligan gets ready for when the colonists start coming back.
Kate has made it back to find Madison asleep while Shawn looks over his new born baby boy with Rick standing next to him, just in time for her to hear Rick. "I get girls, three to be precise and you get a boy." It made Kate stop before she got too close.
'He does want a boy! I knew it. However even if she does try to give him a son, there was no guarantee it wouldn't be yet another girl. Would that mean he would expect her to get pregnant yet again?
Maybe they did need to talk. Just not today.'
Due to the next three to four days being harvest days, unloading the cargo ship had to be delayed.
However the Moon Shines had shown up with just satellites to put into orbit. However considering how much of the medical supplies had been used up during Kate's injury, Gilligan was having over half of what he had on board transported down.
Supplies on board the cargo ship:
Material for the construction of 3 silos.
More farming equipment, all of which needed some assembly.
Two more windmills.
42 batteries as a back-up power.
6 more residential domes.
More kitchen equipment to help create different and larger meals.
The first of several hundred pilings for the first city tower.
And one more item that was unexpected, that Zhukov himself flew down and delivered personally.
"My ship has finished delivering the satellites and placing them in orbit. As soon as they are all tested and your Lucy can access them all, my ship will be leaving. As soon as the cargo ship is unloaded it will be leaving too.
First, let me say how sorry I am that you were injured the very next day detective, however I am happy to see you up and walking after it." Zhukov expresses his regrets.
"Thanks captain, it's been a rough first 7 months on this planet. … But what do you have here?" Kate motions to what Zhukov came down in.
"Well let me show you. This baby has more range than your normal shuttle. As you can see its construction is similar to those shuttles used on our cargo ships, just bigger.
The council has selected a contractor to build the factory building and operate it on your neighboring planet, so you will have neighbors soon. It was decided that until they factory was complete with housing on top and greenhouses with plants from this planet.
Until that time this is the first one of many that will be coming your way. You will be shuttling the construction workers back and forth between that planet and this one. In addition you will be using it to deliver food you have prepared and ultimately of course the plants for the greenhouses." Zhukov explains.
"So that's the reason for the extra kitchen equipment and extra residential domes." Rick gets it now.
"Correct. The fourth cargo ship has almost completed construction. They are relatively easy to construct since they are little more than hollow ships with engines and a flight bay.
As soon as its construction is complete and been tested it along with 2 other cargo ships will be showing up with cargo and more of these babies here.
Once the factory is up and operational it will start construction of a barge to get dirt from the ocean floor and start construction of the modules that will make up the first of two floating cities,"Zhukov informs them smiling.
"Which reminds me, the council wanted to thank Alexis for bringing back the necessary data to build this type of city. Without that information, they are not sure what they would do with that planet." Zhukov agreed with the council. Without Earth there would likely be no floating city.
However before either Rick or Kate could say something. "Oh one more item that may interest you. The council has given approval for the construction of a cruise ship. Their basing the design off of one of your Earth ocean sailing cruise ships. The plan is to allow people to explore one of the colony planets.
Right now the thought is to allow for people who live on Tellus to travel to and explore a planet that isn't mostly desert. The plan is to have space for 1,500 hundred people with about 300 staff.
If it becomes popular maybe they will build another one." Zhukov explains smiling since he liked the idea.
"So Callisto and the others may become a tourist destinations, interesting." Rick was interested.
"I might want to go on one just to see it. See what it is like versus what the cruise ships I remember were like." Rick was interested in seeing it, maybe not going on it, but to see how much alike the two were.
"I suppose when our neighbors show up we'll have extra shuttle duty." Rick comments, since shuttle pilots were always needed.
Zhukov however is shaking his head. "Part of the contractor contract is to provide his own shuttle pilots. He will also do all the loading and unloading of the supplies between the two planets.
You'll only be asked to provide the food, take the food to them and of course provide the plants for their greenhouse. The contractor has already hired one of the people that Miss Alexis has trained to work the greenhouses for the contractor." Zhukov tells them still smiling.
Now he had Kate grinning for the first time. Something Alexis had done was coming back to be a benefit. Kate wondered if she knew who it was?
Kate and Rick started shuttle duty the next day to get all the supplies down while the crew of Moon Shines helped them build the silos and construct the domes for future colonists. In this case it would be workers.
The rest of the deliveries were done by the colonists. Having the silos show up was good timing since they had a lot of garden space.
It was 2 weeks later now:
"Mom can we go see the baby?" Emily asks Kate while they were all in their dome.
"Sure, just make sure Mags or Shawn say yes, …. and you leave when they ask you too." Kate has to yell the last part to their backs as Emily and Kali take off at a run. Knowing those two had only heard the "Yes" part.
"Those two have really taken a shine to him." Rick points out.
"Yea since they already consider Mags and Shawn as part of the family so is the baby." Kate admits.
"You two have recreated what you had when you were young. The only thing missing is the parents." Rick starts laughing. "Which are you two if you think about it."
Kate picks up a throw pillow and throws it at him. Kate however was grinning since he was right.
Emily, Kali and Matt where her, Madison and Kali. Except Madison, Shawn, Rick and herself were the parents now. Great, now she was feeling old!
Alexis was in the greenhouse since she had a lot of work to do. Some of it was ready to be picked and still more plants were ready for bigger pots and all of it needed water. Alexis was really missing having an automatic water and misting system like she had on Earth. It was however a lot like the summer home.
And the girls were likely to be gone for at least an hour. So, …..
Kate got up and started running her hands down Rick's arms. "All the girls are gone babe." Kate coos at him.
Rick turns to look at Kate and sees something mischievous in her eyes. "Yes I do believe they are."
Kate runs her hands a little lower and moves them up and down his thigh. "We should have at least an hour all to ourselves." Kate purrs into his ear.
"One whole hour." Rick comments trying to sound uninterested.
Kate gets up and sits on his lap facing him. "We can do a lot in an hour." Kate was grinning.
"And what would you suggest we do for one whole hour?" Rick was still playing hard to get.
"We could go visit the baby?" Rick offers an option. Getting Kate to shake her head.
"We could go help Alexis with all her greenhouses, you've gotten to be pretty good at it now." Rick offers another option. Getting Kate to shake her head and start kissing his face, working her way around to kissing and then nibbling on his ear. Then work her way down to his neck.
"We could, ….. we could, …." Rick was losing the fight as Kate starts nibbling on his neck.
"Oh screw it!" As Rick starts working Kate out of her clothes, while Kate has started doing the same with his.