Author's note: Thank you so much to my beta author, darkin520, for her invaluable help and feedback! Darcy, you are fantastic! :) I hope everyone enjoys the story…and, of course, please read and review. Your thoughts make my day!
Healing the Wild - Chapter 2
"Doc, did you just see what I just saw?"
"I think so, Lucas." Both of them were still overwhelmed.
"That was…very cool. We'd better tell the captain."
Kristin nodded and reached for her PAL unit and called Nathan over.
"Captain to Science lab 4, please." Nathan noticed something was different about her voice, like she was in shock. He responded immediately.
"Kristin, everything okay?"
"Yes. I, uh…I think you'd better get over here, Captain."
"I'll be right there."
Within moments, he was there with a concerned look on his face. He approached Kristin and Lucas, who were staring at a small blue fish in a separate bowl from one of the tanks.
"What's wrong?"
Kristin spoke in a low whisper, so as to not alert anyone else in the area in case they were mistaken. "Oh, I don't think anything is wrong. But you should be aware that Lucas and I have just witnessed a potential miracle…I think this fish…possibly all of these creatures on the reef…possess an innate ability to heal their own wounds."
Nathan's eyes widened. He responded in an equally low voice.
"But that's…I mean…can you be sure? I mean, is there a way to prove this?"
"I'll see if there is something peculiar in their genetic makeup. Nathan, this could be a huge breakthrough."
"Well, see what you can find out about it before we alert anyone." He looked around suspiciously. "We don't want this falling into the wrong hands."
"Should I call off my staff?"
"Perhaps it would be wise to put this on hold until you and Lucas can pinpoint this. Only tell people if you need their expertise, but I'd like to keep this as quiet as possible."
"Understood, Captain; I couldn't agree more." Kristin nodded and looked at Lucas. "Come on, Lucas. You and I have some work to do."
"Right on." Lucas was especially excited to be involved in this opportunity. This was a unique chance to work on a top-secret experiment.
Kristin called off the science team and had them begin cleaning some of the samples up. She gathered everyone's reports and documentations, and she and Lucas began to take a look. No one had stumbled on anything yet, which was good news. After a few hours of experimentation, Lucas and Kristin were able to make a few initial assumptions. They retreated to Kristin's quarters and called Captain Bridger to join them for what they found.
Bridger spoke as he walked in the door and locked it behind him.
"So, what were you able to find out so far?"
Kristin jumped in. "Well, so far…what we have noticed is an extremely heightened level of enzymatic activity in these creatures. They have properties that allow them to create chemical reactions a lot more quickly than normal…I'm talking oxidation reduction, hydrolysis, isomerization, ligases…in a nutshell, energy breakdown and absorption, protein synthesis, cell regeneration...well, we haven't calculated it yet, but these processes seem over 100 times more effective than normal! Nathan, their immune systems are extraordinary."
Lucas chimed in. "Something like this could revolutionize medicine."
Kristin jumped back in, unable to control herself. "We haven't yet isolated all of the chromosomal properties and what we've found is just preliminary, but it's certainly proving to be exciting."
Nathan smiled, impressed with his two scientists and thrilled with the possibilities. "This is fantastic. Good work. Keep doing what you're doing. But...keep it on the down low. Once we have more information, prepare a full report."
Kristin nodded and Lucas spoke, "Does this mean we get a Nobel Prize?"
"Well, I don't know about that…but I'll be sure your names are the first two on this discovery."
Lucas smiled wide, his eyes beaming with the possibilities as he looked at Kristin. Nathan thought of something and spoke.
'Oh, and Kristin, were you able to find out what that marble thing is?"
"Not yet. I was so wrapped up with this other work that I completely forgot about it. But, I have it here in my drawer." She walked over to her nightstand, pulled out the box, and put it on top of her nightstand. "I'll take a look at it in the morning."
"Alright, well, I'm needed back on the bridge. You both get some rest. It's been a long and exciting day. I hope to join you tomorrow." He opened the door and looked back at them. "Excellent work. I'm proud of both of you." He smiled and walked out. Lucas couldn't stop smiling, and he and Kristin shared a strong hug.
"Alright, smarty pants, you heard him. We should get some rest and be ready for another busy day."
"Absolutely, Doc." He paused before he asked the next question with a twinkle in his eye. "Have you ever known anyone who's won a Nobel Prize before?"
"Oh, Lucas, let's not get ahead of ourselves. Let's just think about what it would be like to isolate something like this and then utilize it so to be able to save so many lives."
Lucas left, and Kristin started getting ready for bed. When she was lying down on her bunk, she grabbed the box on her nightstand and took a closer look. The gems seemed to be brighter than they were before. She opened up the box and looked back inside. The previously light blue orb was now a shade of pink and seemed to be glowing.
"Well, that's strange. I could have sworn it was blue earlier today," she muttered to herself.
She picked up the pearl-looking orb and rolled it around her hand to see if anything else had changed. It seemed a little heavier. It was then she noticed some sort of inscription on the bottom of the box. They looked like a language but she had no idea which one. She'd need to talk to Lieutenant O'Neill about this. He was fluent in several languages, and she deduced that he would have a clue in translating. She put the orb on her nightstand right next to the open box. She was too tired to think too much about it right now and fell right to sleep.
The next morning, she woke up completely refreshed and ready to take on the rest of their new research. She also had a strange feeling; somehow, she felt different...stronger. She went to the bathroom and got ready to take a shower. As she unwrapped her bandage so as to not get it wet, she noticed her hand wasn't in any more pain. When she removed the last bit of gauze, she saw her hand looked completely healed. There was nothing there, not even a light scar. What's more, her whole hand looked…younger…somehow. She looked up at the mirror and noticed her whole appearance looked a little younger. Her eye and forehead wrinkles were significantly less, if not gone, and her skin was radiant. She was really confused.
"What is going on here?" She touched her face incredulously. As she showered, she felt every part of her body was different. Her abs were more pronounced, her arms seemed muscular…even her hair had a stronger, brighter tinge to it, and her gray hairs were gone. It was like she was back in her twenties or early thirties. She got ready and went out to the lab where she knew she'd find Lucas.
As she walked to the lab, she didn't notice that some members of the crew were staring at her as she walked by. She saw Lucas sitting at the bench, deep in thought as he stared at some lab results and wondered how long he had been there. She noticed he looked a little tired and had a cup of coffee next to him.
"Lucas, did you get enough rest last night?"
Lucas looked up and was about to answer, but his face looked a little shocked.
"What's wrong? You look like you've seen a ghost." Kristin tried to lighten the mood.
Lucas was at a loss for words. "I…I'm sorry. I just…Doc, you look…different."
"Yes, I suppose I do. I really needed a good long rest. I feel better than I have in ages."
"No, but…I mean. You look…I don't know… lots younger."
"Lucas, thank you for the comment. But come on, I just put on a little makeup and had some very restful sleep. It's nothing. Now, let's get back to our work. The sooner we figure this out, the sooner we can help the world." She brushed his comments off, trying not to attract too much attention. But deep down, she did think something was weird and was hoping to find out what.
"Well, you look great, whatever it is."
They continued their experiments. Somehow, everything that came up was clear to Kristin. It was almost like her movements and thoughts required no energy on her part. Their research was going very well, though they were still waiting on crucial results that would take anywhere between 24 to 48 hours to interact and appear.
She sat down at her computer and figured she'd summarize what they had found so far. Her typing was quick and flawless. She surprised herself with how fluid it all was.
On the bridge…
Everything was running smoothly on the bridge, when all of a sudden Lieutenant Tim O'Neill spoke up in a distressed voice.
"Captain, I have an emergency uplink from the Terra Guardi farming colony."
Nathan and the rest of the bridge looked worried. "Put it up on the main screen, O'Neill."
"Aye, Sir."
The screen came up to show the close-up of an obviously worried man.
"Mayday, mayday, this is the Terra Guardi farming colony. My name is Sean Reese; I am the bionics lab coordinator at our facility. We have just been attacked."
"Mr. Reese, this is Captain Nathan Bridger of the UEO seaQuest. We are nearby and are able to lend you assistance. Do you know who these people are and why they attacked you?"
"We believe they are drug traffickers. They answer to a man named Alfredo Diaz. They've been stealing some of our crops and have been terrorizing our people for years. I guess you could say we had an…informal agreement…with them. But now, they are collecting more than their share." Reese looked pained and seemed guilty of something. Nathan knew there was more to the story, but decided not to probe just yet.
"We'll be there as soon as possible. Are the attackers still there?"
"I don't know. We're in hiding, trying to avoid getting caught or hurt or…killed."
"Do you have any wounded?"
"Several, I'm afraid. Please hurry!" With that, Dr. Reese terminated the transmission. Nathan looked at Commander Jonathan Ford.
"Commander, how far are we from the colony?"
"We can be there in 15 minutes."
"Do it. Crocker!"
Chief Manilow Crocker looked alert. "Sir!"
"I want you to assemble a security team and get them to a launch immediately."
"Yes, Sir!" Crocker responded immediately and alerted his team.
"O'Neill, I want you to keep listening for any other communications. See if you can get us into their security system. I want full video of what's going on out there. Ortiz!"
Chief Miguel Ortiz looked at attention.
"I want you to send the WSKRS out. See if you can get us a visual on what's going on out there. But don't let anyone see you."
"Aye, Captain."
Nathan looked at Commander Ford. "I'll be in the science bay if you need me. I'm going to assemble a med team."
"Yes, Sir."
Nathan ran to the science bay as quickly, but safely, as he could. He saw Lucas there standing near one of the benches, and Kristin was hunched over one of the microscopes on the bench next to it.
"Lucas! I need your help. We have an emergency situation at a nearby farming colony. Drug traffickers, led by a man named Alfredo Diaz, are attacking them. See what you can find out about him."
"Alright, Cap, but what about our research?"
"I'm afraid that's going to have to wait."
Kristin looked up from the microscope, having heard what was going on and faced the captain.
"Are you in need of a medical team?"
Bridger looked over at the sound of her voice and did a double take, looking confused and shocked. Kristin looked a little annoyed.
"Not you too. Look, I got lots of sleep and put on some makeup. Now everyone is staring at me like I'm some freak of nature."
"It's just…well, you just…look…"
She finished his thought. "…different, yes, I know. But we have a crisis on our hands, Captain. Should I assemble some of my people to tend to the wounded?"
He snapped out of it and tried to ignore the obvious. "Yes, I want you and a few others to go on board to help these people. Meet in the launch bay in 10 minutes."
"Yes, Captain." She walked away, ready to assemble her team and the necessary medical supplies.
Nathan looked at Lucas, still a bit shocked.
"Do you see what I 'm seeing?"
"Yes, Cap. But she doesn't seem too thrilled to hear it from anyone. She looks amazing, though."
Nathan breathed out a heavy sigh he didn't know he was holding in. "That, she does." He seemed lost in his thoughts, staring off at Kristin as she expertly assembled her team in the distance.
Lucas smiled knowingly, trying to act as if he didn't realize his captain's reaction to the ship's doctor. Then again, he always knew that chemistry was there between them. Today was just a little more obvious. "So, Cap, Alfredo Diaz?"
Nathan looked at the kid as if he just woke up from a trance. "Yes, see what you can find out about these people."
"Yes, Sir." Lucas smiled all the way back to his quarters. Nathan was left looking perplexed and a little confused by his thoughts. She really did look very different. He had always thought she was beautiful but suddenly, she seemed…radiant. He took one more look towards her and noticed she had a clipboard as she approached several members of her team. Wait a second…her hand. She no longer had her bandage on. Her hand was completely healed. Something was definitely strange about all this. He was sure she would have had at least a few scars from the scrapes. He quickly regained control of his thoughts and turned to hurry to the launch bay, ready to get a team to that colony. The whole way there, he couldn't stop thinking about her.