Note: Apologies for the long break since the last chapter. I've had a very busy time in Real Life, including catching a nasty stomach bug – I suspect partly my own fault for working far too much overtime and getting run down. I've been suitably reminded of the importance of rest and recharging batteries. I hope everyone is well.
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ACT 2 – TRUTH
Chapter 38 – Family Secrets
It had been a long and tedious day on the Sythus. The progress tunnelling through the ice debris field and then through the outer ring of the asteroid field was taking a long time, but had been very successful so far.
The Hunt Fleet had been working a good system, rotating round which ship was at the point of the slim arrow formation cutting through the rocks, the lead ship taking on the duties of coordinating the work. Weapons were taking care of the majority of the rocky pieces ahead of the Fleet, with Fighters then firing on the resulting debris to reduce everything further until nothing was left but dust. For some rocks though, their size and composition meant that Fighters and Transports had to tow them out of the way, which added to the time, but made matters safer.
Given the long, hard work and complexity of moving, tracking and predicting so many drifting pieces of ice and rock, the tunnelling was going exceptionally well. With all the Fleet ships working together, pooling their computer analysis, sensors, Fighters, Transports and crew together, they had managed to work endlessly, rotating staff so that there had been no break in the process. The Sensor Platform Ship – always nestled safely in the middle of the Fleet's formation – was also adding significant assistance in mapping and analysing the inflowing asteroid data. That had been assisted further by the sensor satellites that Nalla and her team on the Transport had already deployed within the larger spaces further into the asteroid field. The Transport, sat waiting for the Fleet just beyond the point the cleared path should arrive, had also been working as a relay for the Sensor Platform and the satellites' scans of the region, constantly expanding the information captured on the asteroid field. Though, given the sheer size of the field, what they had obtained so far was just a tiny drop in a sea of unknowns about this region.
Still, everything achieved so far was, in Teyla's opinion, an excellent demonstration of the Alliance Military working at its co-ordinated best. All were striving towards a common goal, easily working together via the established Military hierarchy, and everyone was well-skilled and efficient at their work.
Teyla had spent most of the day in Central Station, but the prolonged well-run mission meant that she could easily take breaks for rest and meals, which her latest reading on pregnancy had stressed as vital. Fortunately, her new medications were still working exceptionally well for her, so that her stomach felt surprisingly settled and her energy levels felt far closer to normal.
Given that the Sythus' would not be in lead position again for a further four hours, there was not a great deal to do on duty in Central Station this afternoon, but it was vital that at least two Elite were on duty in case anything unexpected happened. Her shift therefore had involved simply coordinating the departments involved in the joint military operation and the usual daily functioning of the Sythus.
The basic and undemanding work had allowed her mind to frequently wander as she worked.
And it always wandered to thoughts of John and their babe.
A few times she had caught herself laying a hand on her lower belly without thinking. When she caught herself doing it, she quickly dropped her hand away, or pretended to be adjusting her holster. Though her fellow Elite onboard knew that she had had a stomach complaint, she did not want the others to worry, or, perhaps, work out her secret by themselves. It was perhaps a foolish fear, but it niggled at her.
It felt very important to her that the next person to know would be John. That was possibly somewhat improbable given this mission and the unknown length of time it could last, but she was determined to hang onto that hope. Plus, it was also important that no one here think that she was incapable of her work right now. Just because she was with child did not make her weak or less skilled. She was needed here, not just as an Elite, but as a Seeker…even more so now given Nalla's worrying awareness of some unknown presence located somewhere in the asteroid field.
Teyla was needed and she was determined to see this mission through.
It was a mantra that she had repeated to herself throughout the last few days and she repeated it silently to herself again now.
An update abruptly flashed across her closest screen on the tactical display table in front of her. An update from the Sythus' bays reporting two Fighters had returned to the ship. With Inifee off the ship on the Transport with Nalla, his second was in lead position overseeing the Pilots and their ships. In her update, the temporary Lead reported that she was swapping in two replacement Pilots to let those returned eat and rest, and that one Fighter had sustained some minor damage while towing a difficult asteroid fragment, but the repairs were already underway and were described as "quick and simple". Teyla officially acknowledged the report with a touch of the screen and saved the detail to the record.
Just to check, and to give her something new to do, Teyla tapped into the Fighter Bays manifest list, seeing for herself the current supplies allocated and how much had been used. Everything was running smoothly and efficiently; which was the standard on the Sythus.
Competition between Elite Warriors was heavily frowned upon, as all were considered one and equal without hierarchy, but the same could not be said for their hired crew. Though competition was not officially encouraged, she knew that the Elite-hired staff could get somewhat competitive when working closely with Military Fleet crew. By their very nature, the Alliance's Military had a strict hierarchy and those working for the Elite could often get pulled into that mentality. Those on the Sythus were already the cream of military and science personnel; the Elite having pick of the very best available to them in the Alliance. However, a certain element of competition happened with joint ventures with the Fleet and she suspected that was very much at play today. The reports on her screens were almost overly updated and precise, far more than was necessary or expected, but it spoke of the care and importance the crew placed on their work.
And, as a result, Teyla felt her own deep sense of pride in her ship's crew. Which suddenly felt rather motherly in its nature. She wasn't sure if that was new or if she was just interpreting things differently in light of her secret condition.
A flashing light lit up in the middle of the tactical display table's screens, telling of a new incoming update to the map of the local area of the asteroid field. The Sensor Platform Ship had been regularly sending these updates to all of the Hunt Fleet, and Teyla watched the updates feed into the sensor map, expanding its detail and distance. She leaned forward a fraction to study the new updated details flashing in green. There appeared to be far more data on the gravitational fields detected on the larger asteroids near Nalla's waiting Transport, but little else of vital significance.
Nothing that suggested the Skerti were close by.
And nothing to suggest that clearing a path through the outer edge of the asteroid field had drawn any unwanted attention…of course they had no idea what that attention might look like, and had no idea if there were even any Skerti in this asteroid field. And even if they were somewhere in the field, considering its vast size, it was very possible that they hadn't detected the Hunt Fleet.
Teyla shifted her gaze to the time displayed next to the map. Throughout the day, she and Si had been regularly checking in with Nalla, ostensibly to check the Transport and it's crew were safe, and that there had been no change in Nalla's awareness of the unknown alien presence. But, in truth, the real reason for the frequent check-ins – which Nalla probably knew anyway – was to check on Nalla herself.
Given the demanding psychic tightrope Nalla was walking along – in both keeping awareness of the alien presence, but not doing anything that might draw its attention – was exceedingly difficult and draining. Though Teyla and Si had very different skills to Nalla, that they were Seekers meant that they were the only ones in the Fleet who could grasp anything close to what Nalla was having to do.
And each time they'd communicated with her, it was very obvious that the strain was getting to the normally very calm and patient Pelydrian.
It had been almost an hour since the last check in with her Transport…
Teyla reached forward and opened an audio link. "Sythus to Transport One."
There was a short pause and then, "Transport One here, receiving you Sythus," Inifee's voice replied. Despite the long days Inifee himself had been in the Transport, he sounded as alert and cheerful as ever.
"Any change of status to report?" Teyla asked, aware of Si sliding into his usual position across from her on the far side of the tactical display table.
"No changes so far, Honoured Elite," Inifee replied instantly. "We have been using the time to study the largest two asteroids closest to our position."
"Yes, we see your updates," Teyla replied, glancing over the sensor map again. "No atmosphere detected at all on any of the local asteroids?"
"None, though we've just detected another low gravitational field on another asteroid further in from our position that has now drifted into our sensor range," Inifee replied.
"I am here, Emmagan," Nalla's voice cut in, sounding as tired and strained as during their last communication. It suggested that Nalla had not had any rest since then, despite Si having suggested it. Teyla looked across the table and met Si' eyes, knowing he was thinking the same.
"How are you, Nalla?" Teyla asked directly.
"There has been no change to the presence that I can detect. I had hoped that there might be a period in which it sleeps, but I've felt no such reducing in its web that suggests rest like that." Nalla didn't even try to hide the disappointment in her voice.
That there had been no sleep period was somewhat odd; all beings, in Teyla's experience so far, needed sleep. Even the Wraith had to hibernate for certain periods. Though it was possible that the alien Nalla was sensing could simply go a long period of time before sleeping…or was purposefully not sleeping, perhaps because it was aware of Nalla?
"That is interesting of itself," Teyla considered out loud, despite the challenge it presented for Nalla.
"I agree," Nalla replied with a faint sigh that was just audible over the link. "I see that the Fleet's progress continues and that the current estimate until you reach us is a further six hours?"
Teyla wasn't sure if she was imagining the grumpy edge to Nalla's voice, but she saw Si glance across the table pointedly. Hearing Nalla so off balance was so unusual that it continued to feel quite disturbing.
"Yes," Teyla confirmed as she tapped into the latest update from the Fleet's combined interface on the tunnelling mission. "We currently estimate approximately six and a half hours until we are likely to reach your position, but given the density of some areas ahead…" She didn't need to explain further.
"Understood," Nalla replied, her voice more measured now, but the strain was still unmistakable.
"Have you slept at all, Nalla?" Si asked.
"I have been resting as best I can while still keeping careful watch," Nalla replied, "I will be fine." There was a touch of a faint smile in her voice now, though it too felt strained.
"We shall check in again in an hour's time, Nalla," Teyla told her, "hopefully we may be able to reduce the timeframe until we reach you."
"Understood, we shall hear from you then."
The audio link cut off.
Teyla looked across the table to Si, seeing her worry reflected in his face.
"The chances are higher that it will take more than seven hours for us to reach them," Si frowned before glancing down at the map. "This particularly dense area here…" he indicated a blotchy patch on the sensor map ahead of the Fleet's current position. The sensor readings suggested a heavy collection of dense rocks that would likely require towing rather than destroying.
"I agree," Teyla nodded with a faint sigh for Nalla. "But the teams are getting impressively fast at clearing the way."
Si nodded, but said nothing else.
Teyla considered his expression. "Nalla is very strong and we both know that Pelydrian telepathic and empathic skills are far superior to our own."
"I know," Si replied quietly. "But if it is the Skerti out there, and if our Gift remains blind, then Nalla will be the only one able to hold the psychic line."
"True," Teyla nodded, sharing his concern. But she also had a great deal of faith in Nalla's abilities. "We have both been in the position as the only Seeker in a battle with the enemy. Nalla is more experienced than we are," she reminded him. After all, despite how she appeared, Nalla was actually decades older than they were, thanks to her Pelydrian lifespan, and she had several more years of on-rotation experience as an Elite than either of them.
In truth, Teyla could not think of anyone better skilled to hold the difficult line that Nalla currently walked. That did not make it easy or without concern, but she had trust in Nalla's abilities.
"That is true," Si conceded.
"Once she is back onboard, we can try combining our skills together; hopefully then we may be able to detect this presence as well and better support Nalla's efforts."
Si nodded. "Then it is important we both rest as much as possible," he uttered as he lifted his gaze up from the expanded sensor map.
"It is well past time for your shift to end, is it not?" She smiled pointedly at him. "In fact, I believe it ended over an hour ago?"
Si' dark cheeks creased into a smile. "True, but I wanted to be here for the latest check in and that sensor update."
"And both are done," Teyla noted.
Si nodded. "So I shall retire to sleep."
Teyla smiled, rather enjoying the fact that it was normally Si who nagged her about taking care of herself.
Si tapped a section of screen directly in front of him on the tactical display table, recording that he was leaving Central Station, shared a nod with young Isen, and then turned and headed away towards the hatchway out.
With Si off-rotation, she and Isen were the only Elite in Central Station, so Teyla ran her eyes over the screens again, feeling desperately grateful once more at how settled her stomach felt. Not for the first time did she send a silent thought of gratitude to those who had developed the medication that was dealing so well with her nausea. And it only helped prove that, despite her current condition, she was strong and able enough for this mission.
Though, Teyla did feel a little guilty at the fact that she was relieved Nalla had not been onboard the ship during the first days that she had learnt of the babe. As much as she felt sorry for Nalla's prolonged and difficult stay on the Transport, she knew that, had the Pelydrian empath been on the Sythus during the initial discovery of her pregnancy, that Nalla would not have been able to miss the shocked emotional storm she had gone through.
And, no doubt, Nalla would have felt compelled to ask if everything was alright, which would have forced Teyla into the prospect of having to lie to her.
Which Nalla would have detected and likely found only more concerning.
But as it was, these days had given Teyla time to process the news and find her peace with it. At least as much as she could until she could share the news with John…
She could only hope he too would be pleased, but that was a question she likely would have to wait a long time to answer.
For now though, both she and the babe were well, and she was keeping John close in her thoughts.
And she was feeling more than capable to face whatever might be waiting in the asteroid field.
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The soft distant sounds of the Healing Bay ward lingered just beyond perception; the repetitive beeps of various medical equipment, the indistinct overlapping voices of people in other rooms, and the occasional metallic clip as a medical pad was set down on the Ward Assistant's desk across the waiting area.
It was all a gentle background constant that Oneakka was faintly aware of beyond the mostly-asleep state in which he rested. If he needed to, he could rise up from the restorative nap to focus on any one sound, but could then easily return down into sleep.
Being able to sleep almost anywhere when needed was a skill he'd always had. As long as he was sat with his back or a shoulder leant against a wall or person, he could sleep regardless as to background noise and stress factors. It didn't matter if it was during the anxious build-ups to battle or in the middle of a prolonged break in fighting, he could still sleep. He was aware that not many others could do it, too overcome with outside noises and worries, but he could remember being able to do it at a very young age back on Ugun. Perhaps that was why, because when your childhood home was attached to a family forge, you got used to not being startled by loud noises. To many others, he imagined the sounds of an active forge near you – hammering, the sound of the bellows keeping the fire blazing at its highest heat, or the hissing rush of hot metal meeting water – would be too loud and obtrusive to allow proper rest. But, for him, those were the sounds of home and family.
So the sounds of the Healing Bay's Off-World Return Ward were hardly distracting.
And he needed this time to rest after the long day and a half full of emotional stresses that had been somewhat new for him. Not that he hadn't feared for someone else's survival who was important to him before – he'd had to do that far too much in his life – but today had been different.
Today he'd learnt new things about himself, his own self-imposed denial now ripped away.
He had a lot to think about later…once Raven had been fully assessed by the Healers and he knew she was okay.
She'd seemed okay when she'd first somehow miraculously appeared on the far side of the thick line of her fellow survivors, waving up at him to catch his attention. Shocked and almost overwhelmed with the rapid transformation from grief to absolute relief, he'd hurried along the ridge of rock to reach her. But he'd immediately seen her struggling, limping through the tight press of people and then she'd taken her time climbing up that rocky wall. Such a short distance with clear easy handholds would have normally been nothing to her skill and experience, but she'd looked tired and drained as she'd done it, and had clearly been favouring one foot over the other.
But, she'd gotten up to him, reaching up to take his hand and he'd been able to pull her up the last distance and into his arms.
He'd not questioned doing that, as it had been pure instinct and relief, but that she had done the same, grabbing onto him like he had been a life raft on a rough and untempered ocean…it had only allowed him to hold her tighter. But then she'd seemed to pass out in his arms and his relief had transformed into fear.
Fortunately, his training had kicked in and he'd been able to tell that she hadn't just died in his arms, and he'd checked her for injuries. She'd regained some consciousness at that point, but he'd quickly picked her up and carried her to the Healers' Transport on which he'd arrived, getting her to proper care.
The Transport's beds had already been filling up in the limited space as he'd carried her inside, so he'd just sat down in the first available seat, holding Raven tightly to him. A healer had quickly helped, running basic checks on Raven and he'd been relieved again to see her wake up again at that point. She'd only really stayed awake long enough to frown grumpily at the Healer having disturbed her, but had answered some questions clearly, so that had given him some confidence.
That she had fallen back to sleep so quickly against him though had made him concerned she had a head-wound, though the patch of dried blood on her temple had turned out not to be her own blood, the Healer able to wipe it away to find nothing underneath. The wrappings around Raven's hands hadn't revealed any burns or injuries underneath, except some redness over her palms. He'd checked the wrappings and seen that the areas that had been over her palms had been polished almost smooth, which said she'd been carrying, pushing or pulling something heavy for quite some time. Given her place at the back of the line of survivors, he suspected she may have been carrying a stretcher. Perhaps even Saoka's?
That theory had been given further evidence when the Healer had pulled a small bespoke-made Litan blaster out from the back of Raven's waistband. He'd taken it and examined the weapon closely. The expensive nature of the blaster was very Saoka, but the bespoke handgrip had been designed for someone with larger hands, so probably Nanuet. The powercell had lost a quarter of its charge. Given the powerful nature of those weapons for their size, and that Oneakka suspected Nanuet was the type of professional who always had his energy weapons fully charged on duty, suggested Raven had seen some action during her travels. For a quarter loss, Oneakka suspected the weapon had been shot multiple times with multiple blasts. But had that been against Wraith or more Humans who had recognised her on Saoka's former station?
The broken screen of her electronic pad, which the Healer had found in Raven's back pocket, had further demonstrated the impact and events of the Station's crash that she'd survived. He'd caught himself hugging her closer to him as they'd waited for the Transport to fill-to-bursting and permission to leave through the Portal. Fortunately, Raven's breathing had been steady, and the nutrient injection and intravenous fluids the Healer had given her had seemed to somewhat improve her paled complexion.
But it wasn't until the Transport had finally left through the Portal, docked at the Facility's Healing Bay and he'd carried Raven to a waiting medical bed, that he'd felt some sense of relief. Raven had woken at that point, her eyes wide and startled in that panicked way people had when they had no idea where they were. He'd reassured her quickly that she was fine, that she was home. After a few blinks, the panic had subsided and she'd released her death grip on his borrowed body armour, and she'd more willingly laid back on the bed to be wheeled away for the decontamination shower and full assessment by the Healers.
He'd wanted to go with her, which obviously wasn't allowed, but he'd assured her as she'd been wheeled away, that he'd be waiting to see her. She'd sent him a small, tired smile just before she'd disappeared from view.
He wasn't entirely sure how long ago that had been, but it had been enough time for his own trip through the decontamination shower and a return assessment, which had felt suspiciously long for a mission in which he'd seen no combat, so he suspected Meiyo had ordered it. He hadn't minded the extra checks on his wound and questions on how he felt, because he and Raven were back home and he'd felt nothing but relief.
After that, he'd picked up some food from a canteen hatch in the main Healing Bay area and then made his way here to wait to see Raven. His napping had distorted his perception of time since, but it didn't matter. He'd wait here until he could see Raven, then he'd…well some proper sleep was in order, and he was supposed to leave for Pelydr tomorrow, so he needed to complete his packing. When he'd been waiting for his return assessment, he'd doublechecked his pad and still no message had come in from Pelydr about adjusting his stay, so he was still going as planned it seemed.
But he wasn't due to leave until tomorrow after midday meal, so there was plenty of time to ensure Raven was actually okay. Perhaps Pelydr would contact him later…
And he had much thinking to do, for which Pelydr was the perfect location, but he didn't want to abandon Raven after what she'd been through. And if it turned out that she had actually sustained more serious hidden injuries, then he'd delay his trip away.
He realised that he'd drifted up from sleep and his mind was turning now, distracting him from the deeper rest patches he'd been enjoying.
Because things had changed now.
And he was going to have to face the reality of it.
There was no point denying anymore, now that he understood this new fact about himself.
About what he wanted.
Footsteps somewhere off to the right caught at his attention. He had no idea how he could recognise Massa just from the way he walked, but Oneakka could. He remained in place on the bench, eyes closed, and listened to Massa approach, pause and then the bench creaked as Massa sat down next to him.
"No news, then?" Massa asked. He'd been here through some of the wait, but had had to leave a few times to move Aki from one set of caregivers to another as well as getting in updates on the ongoing situation on Saoka's planet.
Oneakka just shook his head as his answer, eyes still closed.
Across the waiting area, another tap of a medical pad touching down onto the Assistant's desk briefly drew his focus, but as nothing else followed, he let his mind drift away.
"It's been almost two hours," Massa muttered. "How long does it take to assess an injured ankle?"
"There were a lot of other survivors packed into the two Transports," Oneakka pointed out.
Massa shifted on the bench with uncharacteristic impatience and Oneakka heard him jabbing at an electronic pad. "They found the point along the tunnels where the Wraith attacked the survivors inside," Massa reported. "And of the dead Wraith there, two were Warrior lineage."
Oneakka didn't reply, knowing what Massa's interpretation of that fact would be. Massa was growing increasingly convinced that a newly matured Warrior lineage Queen was out beyond the border. Oneakka wasn't convinced by the facts yet.
"They're taking them and the other dead Warrior lineage males at the BreakAway One site to the Mad Moon to be properly studied," Massa continued. "See if they can work out how long ago they were batch birthed."
"A few Warrior lineage among all those others," Oneakka found himself repeating his earlier comment, "implies that they were survivors simply mixed in on the Cruiser."
"Several landed and crashed Wraith Fighters on Saoka's planet are definitely Warrior lineage ships: extra thick hull, more power and less stable," Massa replied. "You saw the footage of that brief view through the Jump point window; there were masses of Wraith ships in that battle with the Skerti. Those Fighters could have come from a Warrior lineage Hive involved in the battle."
Oneakka vaguely waggled his head to admit that was possible.
"I've suggested that Skan asks Atlantis if they've seen any of the lineage, he's going to supply them with some images," Massa added.
"Anything new from Atlantis?" Oneakka asked, eyes still closed, but his mind was feeling more alert now.
"Just still assessing the Ancestor Janus' information on the biology and history of the Ancestors meeting the Skerti. Nothing useful yet."
Oneakka frowned at that clearly incorrect assessment. He broke open his right eye and considered Massa's profile next to him. "Biology and history, how are they not important?" He asked sarcastically.
Massa's profile looked drawn and tired, having been awake just as long as Oneakka.
"Are you still on the incident rotation?" Oneakka asked.
Massa shook his head, his eyes down on the pad in his dark hands. "I've signed away. I'll sleep once we know Seeal is okay."
Oneakka considered his old friend's face. He'd seen Massa in every bad state and this was far from anywhere close to his worse, but grumpy impatience was always a surefire sign Massa needed to sleep. But he wanted to see Raven too so…
Oneakka closed his eye again and settled back into the more restful state.
"Did you text link Seeal's friend?" Massa asked abruptly.
"Yes. Amel," Oneakka nodded and didn't point out that he'd already told Massa that.
"And you said she was breathless like the others?"
"Amel?" Oneakka asked, purposefully misunderstanding.
"Seeal," Massa insisted.
"She was, but less than some of the others in the transport," Oneakka replied.
Massa dropped into silence.
Oneakka waited to see if more questions would arrive, but Massa appeared to have run out.
It was nice that Raven clearly meant a lot to Massa. That felt even more important now. And Halling. Halling hadn't seemed to like Raven at first, but the two had clearly bonded during Oneakka's injury and recovery, and he'd seen them share a very friendly hug before Halling had left on the hunt mission.
His two closest friends both liked Raven, cared for her.
Approved of her.
And both had mentioned less than subtle comments that they had seen the attraction between him and Raven. He'd dismissed those comments before, not wanting to hear it, but now…now it felt like further confirmation of what was very obvious to him now.
"Two hours is a long time," Massa uttered. "It could mean they've found something worrying."
"Or that the others were worse off than her and she had reduced priority through the scanner," Oneakka pointed out, though felt a niggle of his own worries voiced by Massa. "She was exhausted too; you know what it can be like going through the decontam shower when you feel like that."
Oneakka didn't mind the decontam shower, but the smell of the sterilising gel they sprayed you with afterwards lingered on you for hours, especially in your hair. He could smell it lingering around him now. The Healing Bay simple white trousers and shirt he was currently dressed in following the shower were comfortable enough, but the thin white shoes were not. He'd considered going to his quarters to change, but he hadn't wanted to leave his post waiting to see Raven. He wouldn't want her to hear that he hadn't been here when she'd called him in, especially as he'd promised her he'd be waiting to see her.
Abruptly, Massa's elbow nudged against his at the same time as the Bay Assistant's voice carried across the waiting room.
"Honoured Elite?" The female called gently.
Oneakka snapped open his eyes and stood up quickly from the bench, assessing the female's features for any sign that she was about to send them to bad news. But she just looked politely efficient as she smiled back.
"You can visit staff member Seeal now," she reported. "Down this corridor," she indicated the corridor to the left of her desk, "and it is the second door on the right."
Oneakka was already halfway across the waiting room heading for the corridor as she finished. "Thank you," he replied and then focused ahead, aware of Massa following closely behind him.
The first set of doors, one in each wall facing each other, were labelled as 'urgent care', and he recognised a few faces in the beds inside who had been on the Transport back. That Raven wasn't in the urgent care area was a good sign at least.
He carried on to the second door on the right, finding it standing open, so he quickly entered, Massa on his heels.
It was a narrow room with only six beds against the right hand wall, and currently only one bed was occupied. Raven was in the fourth bed down and a male Healer was stood beside her bed, partly blocking Oneakka's view of her as he quickly strode down the room towards the end of her bed.
As he got closer, he could see from the angle of her bed that she was sat up – that was good – and that her right leg was noticeably higher than the left under the white medical blanket over her. Good, they'd properly assessed and treated her injured ankle then.
Closer now, Raven and the Healer noticed they had company, and the Healer stepped aside enough so that Raven's face came into Oneakka's view.
She was indeed sat up, the head of her medical bed raised right up and a collection of pillows supporting her back, but she wasn't slouched back against them as if she could barely sit by herself. Instead, she looked like she was sat under her own power, but her face was definitely too pale for her usual complexion and there were dark circles under her tired looking eyes.
Her gaze slid to him, her eyes looking a little glazed, but then a big smile broke across her face as he neared the end of her bed.
"Hi," she declared, but the word arrived with a slightly slurred, slow fashion that wasn't normal. Was that because she was exhausted or had they given her some strong pain medication?
Raven's eyes slid away from him. "Massa!" Her smile became an almost drunken grin as she noticed Massa was here too.
Massa, in his typical gregarious way, hurried up the closest side of her bed to reach Raven, forcing the Healer to step back to give Massa room to reach down and hug Raven.
Oneakka frowned at the hurried embrace, watching Raven's face to be sure Massa wasn't hurting her with his excessively eager squeeze, but her eyes were closed and she was smiling as she returned Massa's hug. Okay then, the hug was okay.
"We were so worried about you, Seeal," Massa gushed anxiously.
Moving around the other side of her bed, Oneakka noticed that there was a medical table near her supporting a bowl, plate and cup. As he moved up to the table, he inspected everything on it. It looked like there had been a small amount of maybe stew in the bowl and there were some breadcrumbs on the plate. Everything was eaten, good. He peered next into the large cup and there was just a thin pool at the bottom of what was probably tea. Her favourite Athosian tea most likely.
"I'm fine, Massa," Raven assured Massa, but her words were again slightly slurred.
Oneakka focused on her, now stood close to her right side. He couldn't see any bruises or scratches on her face, but he spotted several on her forearms, bare below the sleeves of the Healing Bay top that stopped just above her elbows. Her long hair, recently washed in the decontam shower, was lying in one free mass over her left shoulder, and as Massa finally let her go and she settled back against the pile of pillows again, her hair looked even blacker against the stark white of the Healing Bay clothes and bedding.
The medical beds were designed to hold even the largest of Elite, so Raven looked strangely petite in the bed today, which made her seem worryingly and uncharacteristically vulnerable. But she was sat up and no one had put a bandage on her head or hooked her up to more fluids, or even an oxygen mask.
"Are you sure you're okay?" Massa pressed her. He had pulled back from the hug, but they were still holding hands. Oneakka found himself focusing on their joined hands resting on the top of her bed's blanket, so seemingly natural and easy for them.
"I'm fine," Raven repeated her own slightly slow assessment, but she'd probably have used that exact same description back on the planet right up until the moment she'd collapsed against him.
Oneakka lifted his eyes from her to the Healer stood on the far side of her bed. "Is she alright?" He pressed the person who actually knew.
"Yes," the Healer smiled back, strangely cheerfully, his hands resting in the deep pockets of his long medical top. "Actually, staff member Seeal asked me to bring you in to hear the results of her assessment with her, as she's feeling rather sleepy." The Healer looked down and gave Raven a friendly smile.
"Is that because you've given her a lot of painkillers…?" Oneakka prompted the Healer.
"Oneakka!" Raven protested up at him and he dropped his gaze quickly from the Healer to meet her glaring look.
That reaction, alert and very much how she normally admonished him, was oddly pleasing to hear, but it was also mixed with a strange sudden new worry that he'd upset her.
"I'm not drugged up," Raven insisted forcefully, though her head wobbled slightly as she talked up at him. She'd let go of Massa's hands now and was focusing solely on him. "I'm just tired." Only she frowned and then quickly switched her attention up to the Healer. "Right? I'm not drugged up, right?"
"No," the Healer assured her. "We just applied some anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving cream to your injured ankle before we bound it in a supportive bandage."
Raven frowned sleepily down at her own legs. Could she not remember them treating her ankle? She snapped her gaze back up to the Healer. "You didn't cut off my boot, did you?" She asked hurriedly, leaning forward slightly.
"No, no," the Healer replied quickly. "You made it very clear that we weren't allowed to do that," he added with a smile.
"Good, good. Thank you," she nodded and her gaze slid back to Oneakka, her sleepy dark eyes meeting his again. "It's hard finding good boots that are well-made."
Oneakka simply nodded back to her, deciding now was not the time to point out to her that, now she lived in the Alliance, it was, in fact, very easy to find good, well-made boots.
"So, is her ankle sprained or is there a fracture?" Oneakka looked back to the Healer, getting the medical report back on track.
"Oneakka!" His name was another sudden telling off from her though and he snapped his gaze back down to her. "I can ask my own questions, thank you," she insisted haughtily up at him, frowning up at him with her pale, tired face.
He'd upset her again.
Had overstepped.
"Of course. I'm sorry, Raven," he found himself quickly apologising contritely.
Which was very new.
"Thank you," Raven stated with a nod and then turned her attention back to the Healer, her chin lifted.
The Healer smiled down at her, waiting for her to ask her questions.
There was a long silent pause.
Oneakka watched Raven squint slightly up at the Healer, then one eye closed tightly. She appeared to be struggling to either decide what to ask or to stay awake.
Finally she lifted one hand and a long index finger pointed towards Oneakka. "What he asked," she decided was her question to the Healer.
To the right, Oneakka thought he saw Massa covering up a smile with his hand, but Oneakka kept his focus on the Healer.
"As you suspected," the Healer replied to Raven, suggesting again that Raven had perhaps been something of a handful during her medical assessment, "it is just a sprain. As I mentioned," the Healer added, speaking slowly and clearly for Raven's tired brain to process, "we've bound your ankle in a supportive bandage for tonight, but you should remove that tomorrow morning and start light, gentle exercise."
Raven nodded.
"Otherwise," the Healer continued, "you have managed to avoid any other injuries, though you are very mentally and physically exhausted, so you need to sleep as much as you can."
"Sleep, okay, I can do that," Raven nodded, her movements a little bigger than normal.
"I am advising that you have a complete week off-rotation as post-engagement recovery time, which has been noted on your record and will be reported to your Project Lead tomorrow."
"Okay," Raven frowned sleepily. "Sleep and recovery time."
Oneakka was instantly suspicious at how easily she was agreeing with everything. She had no questions, no comments other than her worried thought about her boots?
The Healer didn't appear to be about to add anything else either, having nothing to say about the scratches and small bruises Oneakka could see on her arms.
He didn't want to upset her again by overstepping though…but someone needed to mention them.
"What about the marks on your arms?" Oneakka asked her instead, and watched as, seemingly without him deciding on it, his hand drifted forward and he lightly touched the back of his fingers against her closest bare elbow.
Her skin had felt warm and healthy.
Raven frowned down at her arms, lifting them and peering down at the scratches and the bruises. "Nothing hurts," she decided as she ran one hand over her forearm. "Probably from one of the fights."
"Fights?" He prompted, emphasising the plural she had used.
"With the Wraith," she answered as she lifted her dark, slightly glazed eyes from her arm and abruptly smiled up at him. "I helped shoot down a Wraith Fighter," she stated proudly.
He smiled back down at her, equally as proud. "Very impressive," he found himself openly complimenting her.
"And then they attacked us again in the tunnel," she added, her smile shifting into a frown.
She'd been right where the Wraith had attacked the tunnel?
He felt a rush of panic for her safety, which was completely irrational because she'd clearly survived that Wraith attack and was sat in front of him.
She squeezed her right eye shut again, not winking at him but instead it was clearly an attempt to focus her thoughts. "I can't remember how many I got."
"With the Litan blaster?" He checked.
She nodded, her right eye opening again.
His Raven; shooting down Wraith Fighters and defending a tunnel from an attack.
They really were rather alike.
"Nanuet leant it to me-" She started only to abruptly cut herself off and glanced around the room. "Saoka? He was badly hurt, is he okay?"
"He's not here, they took him to a Military Healing Bay facility," Massa reported.
"Is he okay?" Raven repeated her question up to Massa, her eyes wide and worried.
"Last report I saw was that he was in surgery," Massa replied. "But I can go find out if there's an update?" He volunteered eagerly.
"Please, Massa, yes, please," she asked, surprisingly worried about her former enemy.
"I'll go find out," Massa assured her and hurried out of the room.
Oneakka switched his attention back to Raven. "So other than your ankle, being tired, and some painless bruises and scratches, you're okay? No head wound?" he added, glancing sideways towards the Healer to whom he was actually directing the question.
"No, you're fine," the Healer immediately jumped in with the reassuring answer. "The scanner showed no head injuries at all."
Oneakka's last knotted worries unravelled instantly with relief. She was okay, she was just tired then. Very tired considering her sleepy slurring and pale face.
"Your TT320 genes certainly worked well for you," the Healer added with a chuckle.
Oneakka frowned across the bed at the male and that strange comment.
The Healer's chuckle died away as he saw Oneakka frowning at him. "Sorry," the Healer said and cleared his throat, "that was a genetic scientist joke. I was part of the team who tested your genetic code to understand your ability to withstand cold temperatures," he added to Raven.
"Ohhhhh," Raven uttered a bit too loudly, "I knew I'd seen you somewhere."
That she hadn't immediately placed someone she'd seen before, told Oneakka how truly exhausted she was. Raven always remembered faces.
He didn't like seeing her so unlike her normal self, so vulnerable.
"It was a truly fascinating study," the Healer smiled down at Raven. "And so interesting to see your TT320 genes likely responsible for helping you avoid further injury and hold up your endurance. Even withstand the effects of the hazardous air on that planet. They are very impressive sets of genetic components and very famous amongst your people for a very good reason," he chuckled again like that made some resemblance of sense.
What was the Healer going on about?
"My people?" Raven asked, appearing equally as confused. "How do you know about Glisi endurance? Are you studying them?" She added, abruptly cross at the idea and her gaze swung round to Oneakka. "Have the Elite gone back there?"
"No, Raven," Oneakka reassured her. He'd have heard if the Alliance were in contact with the Glisi.
"No, no," the Healer quickly added, "I wasn't referring to that part of your genetics."
Oneakka blinked at the Healer.
What?
"What?" Raven voiced the same thought out loud. "What part?" She repeated, clearly confused.
The Healer's face shifted into a worried frown. "It was all in the report we sent you."
Oneakka shifted his gaze down to Raven. "What report?" He asked them both.
"The report on your genetic analysis," the Healer replied to Raven.
"The one that said there was an explanation why I'm so abnormal for a Glisi?" Raven asked, her words slow and tired.
"Yes," the Healer smiled, seeming relieved. "That's the one."
Oneakka frowned down at Raven. She hadn't mentioned any explanation why she was a much smaller than average Glisi.
But, he realised, she was frowning up at the Healer with what appeared to be clear confusion. She was very tired though…
"Do you remember what the report said?" Oneakka asked her.
She swung her head round to look up at him. "I only read the bit at the top."
He frowned down at her, surprised at that answer. "You didn't read all the report?"
"There was a summary bit at the top," she insisted back up at him, her eyes looking a little red and watery with tiredness. "It said some details on possible reasons why I could withstand cold and that there was an explanation why I'm abnormally small. I didn't read anymore of the medical science stuff. There was a genetic reason why I'm abnormal, that was enough to know."
"You're not abnormal," Oneakka insisted forcefully back at her. "You're normal Human size, tall for a female even. Not abnormal."
She frowned grumpily up at him for some reason and then switched her attention back to the Healer. "What did the report say?"
"We identified a recognisable part of your genetic structure – including the TT320 genes – which explains why you are not the same size as other Glisi," the Healer explained. "It's because part of your genetic heritage is not Glisi."
"What?!" Raven exclaimed loudly. "I thought I just had some genetic disease or something."
"No," the Healer frowned at her.
Oneakka switched his attention from Raven to the Healer and back again.
"Your size is just an expression of your other heritage. You are one-quarter Athosian," the Healer stated.
Oneakka blinked at the Healer.
Athosian?
"A quarter….?" Raven asked, her voice dying away into what looked like true shock at the news.
"From your father," the Healer continued. "He was half-Athosian."
Oneakka watched Raven rock back against her pillows as if that additional piece of information had been a physical blow. Her eyes were massive and her mouth was hanging open. He'd never seen her look so shocked, so thrown before. She was literally speechless, which was exceedingly rare for Raven.
"And the conclusion is absolutely certain, Healer?" Oneakka asked on her behalf.
"Oh yes," the Healer replied. "The TT320 gene sequences are only found in those from Athos. They're the amazing components that give many Athosians increased agility, speed and strength."
Oneakka knew that Athosians were often exceptionally physically gifted, after all there was a high proportion of Elite who were Athosian due to that very fact, but he'd not known what the genetic components responsible were called.
Raven was still looking overwhelmed, so Oneakka continued for her.
"And you know it was her Father for certain who was part-Athosian…?"
"Yes, it had to be," the Healer replied. "Some of the areas of the TT320 codes are only inherited through the female line and those aren't present here. It's a fascinating area of research," the Healer smiled.
Oneakka shifted his gaze back down to Raven, but she was still leant back against her pillows, shock making her look even paler now.
"And it's not that there could just be some shared Glisi and Athosian traits?" Oneakka checked with the Healer. "There's hardly any genetic research on the Glisi so…"
"Oh no, it's clearly recently inherited Athosian genetics," the Healer dismissed the idea. "One quarter is clearly Athosian in origin and your unusual Glisi size," the Healer smiled down at Raven, "is also evidence of that. It's just a twist of genetic inheritance that you are expressing Athosian size, mostly. You are actually very tall for an Athosian female, your limb length and foot size are also long for-"
"My father was half-Athosian?" Raven interrupted him.
"Yes," the Healer nodded. "In fact, given the long history the Athosians have in trading with the Glisi camps when they are close enough to the Portal, it is most likely that your Athosian Grandfather was a Trader."
Ah, that made some sense to Oneakka now. Traders had a long history of moving from planet to planet, always on the move. Given that Raven had told him that the Glisi camp her family had been part of was only close to the Portal every seven years or so, it made some sense that perhaps a Glisi female might not know she was carrying a babe until much later, once the Trader was long gone and the camp had moved on through the snowy forest landscape.
"Athos does have a growing genetic register," the Healer continued, "so it is possible that you could find that you have some distant family on Athos."
Oneakka watched Raven's eyes grow massive again as she pressed herself back into her pillows. She'd reached the point of feeling completely overwhelmed.
"I think that's maybe something for another day," Oneakka quickly said to the Healer. "For now though, Seeal only needs some sleep and to take an entire week off-rotation to rest?" Oneakka gave the Healer a pointed look.
"Yes, yes, a full week would be best," the Healer nodded quickly.
"So rest, sleep and she'll be okay," Oneakka supplied the Healer with his summary.
The Healer nodded, but then added to Raven, "but you'll have to stay in here tonight for observation."
"What?!" Raven's shock instantly transmuted into a focused frown on that news. "No, I want to go back to my quarters."
"The air on that planet you were on can have some dangerous effects on some people," the Healer replied as, at the far end of the room, Massa appeared through the door, presumably with news on Saoka.
"I'm fine, I feel fine. I'm breathing fine," Raven insisted to the Healer, her unfocused tired state making her stumble over her words.
"You do seem fine," the Healer replied, "and probably will be, but some people do show delayed signs of breathing difficulties in the twelve hours after exposure, so we need to keep you here for observation. It will only be for the rest of this evening and overnight. You can go back to your quarters tomorrow morning."
Strangely desperate anxiety played across Raven's face and she opened her mouth but then closed it again, seemingly unable to come up with an argument against staying in the Healing Bay.
Raven unable to come up with an argument against something? It was another rarity that spoke of the true depth of her exhaustion.
"Is it just observation?" Oneakka checked with the Healer as Massa arrived beside the male. "Could one of us sit in her quarters with her overnight to make sure she's okay?"
The Healer frowned, seeming thrown by the question for some reason. "They'd have to stay awake all night."
"Not a problem," Oneakka stated firmly and looked down to Raven, who was looking up at him with an anxious vulnerable look. "I can sit in your quarters while you sleep," he offered. "Just be there in case your breathing is a problem."
A strange mix of hopeful relief and also clear surprise crossed her drawn face.
"You sat by my side during my recovery," he explained gently. "Held vigil for me, and I can do the same for you. If you want?" He added cautiously. He knew that she trusted him…but then they'd been arguing a lot lately… Maybe that trust had been damaged…
She switched her gaze back to the Healer. "Will you let me go to my quarters if he does?" She checked, seemingly accepting the offer.
Oneakka felt a little ripple of relief in his chest.
"Alright," the Healer replied. "But you need to call for medical assistance at the first sign of any problems."
"We will," Oneakka nodded confidently, making sure the Healer could see his conviction. He'd sat watching over many injured friends, colleagues, and civilians over the years.
But that he could do that for Raven felt…warmer, satisfying.
She did trust him.
At least that much.
"If you have any issues with your ankle," the Healer added to Raven, "or if you want to discuss the genetic results further, just come by the Healing Bay."
"Thank you," Raven replied, but Oneakka got the impression that she wouldn't be asking anything about her revealed unexpected Athosian history any time soon.
The Healer nodded goodbye to them all and turned to leave. He'd not even gotten past the end of Raven's bed before she was already lifting her blanket, clearly desperate to leave.
"Genetic results?" Massa asked worriedly. "Is everything okay?"
Raven paused to look up from what had quickly become something of a struggle between her and the blanket over her legs. "I'm not all Glisi, Massa," she blurted. "Is Saoka okay?" She asked without pausing for breath.
Massa recovered quickly from his confused frown to a reassuring smile. "He's still in surgery, but they expect him to be fine."
"Good," Raven sighed wearily as she returned her attention to fighting her bedding.
Oneakka frowned down at her battle. She had tried turning in place and drawing her legs up the bed, but had pulled the blanket in such a way that it had tangled with her legs. Her coordination was so off that she didn't seem to be able to work out how to free herself.
He debated about reaching in to help, but that would involve reaching right into her personal space; you didn't reach around a female's lap and legs without permission first…
"It would have been really irritating if all that work hadn't saved Saoka's life," she muttered. "What is wrong with this bed?!" She exclaimed irritably as she remained tangled up in her bedding.
"Let me help you," Oneakka offered as he reached in and gripped the blanket a polite distance from her lap and pulled it away from her. As he did, he realised what the problem had been; she'd had multiple layers of blankets over her and her bandaged right foot had caught up in the innermost blanket.
"Stupid blankets," she muttered as she finally extracted herself and twisted round in the centre of the bed, one arm against her pile of pillows, and started shuffling her backside towards the side of the bed near Oneakka. "Just like Saoka's stupid escape tunnels," she added as she worked hard to simply get herself to the edge of her mattress.
Oneakka reached for her closest upper arm, adding some support as she finally got her legs down over the edge of the bed, at which point she paused with a weary sigh and looked up at him.
"There were actual holes in the ceiling of the tunnels," she complained, blinking slowly and heavily, somehow able to be both sleepy and professionally affronted at the same time. "Clearly no one did any maintenance."
"Is that how the Wraith got inside the tunnel?" Oneakka checked as he pulled on her arm a little to help as she started pushing herself up from the bed.
"Just dropped in on us," she confirmed, but getting upright was taking her quite a bit of effort. She abruptly paused halfway to standing as her hand on the pillows slipped and she started listing away from him. He quickly switched his other hand to her arm and reached his right arm around her back to stop her fall and add some support.
"I'm okay," she said quickly as she straightened. "I can manage."
But he could feel her wavering on her feet and he frowned down at her bandaged right foot. She appeared to be able to put her weight on it, but it was still a decent walk through the Facility to her quarters.
"I'll get you a wheeled chair," Massa was the one to decide as he passed through Oneakka's peripheral vision, heading to where several wheeled chairs were stored at the end of the narrow room.
"I don't need a chair," Raven protested, but she had started leaning some of her weight into Oneakka's support. "I can manage," she repeated her conviction, but she sounded exhausted.
"It'll mean getting to your quarters quicker, Raven," Oneakka pointed out. "You'll get to your bed faster," he added, remembering her repeated compliments about Elite mattresses.
He watched her profile move through a couple of exaggerated expressions, her ability to hide what she was feeling seemingly removed by her exhaustion.
"And why not let us take care of you for a change," Massa added as he pushed the wheeled chair into view, stopping it just in front of her.
"I walked all day, I can walk to my quarters," Raven argued though, her pride not wanting to give into the fact that she needed help.
"Well you can try walking," Oneakka told her, "but if you collapse on the way, I will carry you the rest of the way over my shoulder."
As he'd hoped, that got a good reaction. She peered sideways at him past her waterfall of black hair over her shoulder. "You wouldn't dare," she accused him.
"I did it that time on the Sythus," he reminded her, holding her slightly bleary dark gaze. Deep dark brown eyes that really were a very Athosian trait.
"You promised you would never carry me over your shoulder like a bag again," she frowned at him.
"I remember you demanding that as I saved your life, but I never made any such promise," he pointed out.
She narrowed her eyes at him in what was probably supposed to be a threatening look, but it came out as more drowsy than intimidating.
"Your choice," he smiled at her. "Chair or I carry you like a bag."
She wobbled a little in his grasp as she looked away from him. "…difficult oaf," she muttered just loud enough for him to hear as she reached down towards the chair.
He kept his hands on her arm and back as she essentially fell into the chair, turning herself on the padded seat with muttering noises while he reached down and lowered the footrests for her bare and bandaged feet.
"There you go," Massa stated all too cheerfully once Raven was installed in the chair. "We'll have you home in no time," he added as he turned the chair and quickly pushed it away from the medical bed. "You had some Late Meal already?"
Oneakka paused to check the bed before he followed them, but there was nothing of hers there. Anything she'd been carrying would be going through decontamination anyway, so he quickly followed Massa pushing her chair towards the exit.
"…desperately wanted some tea," Raven was saying as Oneakka caught up with them at the door, Massa wheeling her out into the corridor outside.
"Athosian tea," Oneakka remarked as he lengthened his stride so he walked alongside Raven.
"Coincidence," Raven replied. She had her right elbow set on the padded armrest of the chair, her chin propped up in her palm, as if just sitting upright was too much for her now.
He considered her tired profile, watched her squeeze her eyes tightly closed and then rapidly blink them open again. He moved a little closer to her side in case she fell asleep and fell out of the chair.
Like with the medical beds, the wheeled chair was designed to accommodate even the largest Elite warrior, so Raven looked oddly small in it.
He felt they should have put a blanket over her lap to keep her warm for the trip to her quarters…which was a stupid thought, he realised, because Raven didn't feel the cold.
They had reached the waiting room and Massa kept up the fast walking pace as they all headed for the exit out of the ward and into the Facility's corridors outside.
There weren't many people around, presumably because it was after Late Meal when social time and gym workouts were preferred by the Recruits. It meant that there were very few people moving through the corridors to see Raven being pushed in a chair, which he suspected she would be pleased about.
As they headed across a central lobby, Oneakka looked down at Raven. She was unnaturally quiet, chin still in her hand but her attention looked directed inwards. Perhaps pondering her new genetic identity?
Part Athosian…
He could actually see it now, not just her mid-tone skin colour which was very common on Athos and her deeply dark eyes. It was also in her strong confidence and sense of pride, and the way she held her chin up high when she was making a decisive point. That was such a common Athosian gesture that it was seen as something of a cliché in the Alliance, but Raven hadn't grown up on Athos, or around any Athosians that he was aware of, so how had she picked up that gesture? He'd assumed it was a cultural thing on Athos, but now he had to wonder. Perhaps it was something to do with Athosian anatomical structure? Perhaps the TT320 genes gave greater flexibility in the neck?
Or, possibly, the Athosian strong sense of self-confidence was somehow genetically encoded.
But Raven didn't look confident right now. Instead she looked almost…sad.
"Are you alright, Raven?" He asked carefully, not sure if it would be deemed overstepping again to ask.
"I think he was shorter than my mother," she uttered with a distant frown.
"Your father?" He guessed.
She nodded slightly against her chin, her eyes moving quickly as if she was studying a picture only she could see in her mind's eye. "I'm pretty sure all Glisi males were taller than the females." She looked up at him, her face creased in confused sadness. "How could I have not noticed that before?"
"You were young, Raven," he pointed out. "Everyone was bigger than you."
She made a sarcastic scoffing sound. "Clearly. But…" she frowned away. "I don't think he was massively shorter."
"Maybe it wasn't all that noticeable," Oneakka shrugged, but he had to wonder… "Or…"
Raven angled her head and peered back up at him. "Or what?" She asked.
"Maybe," he considered as they turned into a new corridor, "it was another reason why your family had to live on the edge of your Glisi camp. Maybe," he glanced ahead and then back down to her watching wide eyes, "you weren't the only one they deemed 'cursed'."
Raven's eyes widened again before she looked away.
He frowned down at her shocked pale profile. Perhaps he shouldn't have said anything…not that she wouldn't have made that jump in logic herself if she weren't feeling so tired.
"What are we talking about?" Massa asked after a silent beat.
Oneakka glanced up from Raven to Massa. "Seeal just found out that she's a quarter-Athosian. Her father was half-Athosian."
"What?!" Massa exclaimed. "Really?" He asked down towards her dark hair.
Raven nodded vaguely.
"Well, that explains more than a few things," Massa said animatedly.
"Why I'm so abnormally small for a Glisi," Raven muttered.
"You're not abnormal," Oneakka corrected her again. "You're part-Athosian."
"Halling is going to be so thrilled when he hears this," Massa added brightly and Oneakka watched one of Massa's hands briefly squeeze Raven's closest shoulder. "You should be proud of your newfound heritage. Athosians are highly respected in the Alliance, and if you register yourself with Athos, you'll be recognised as a citizen. You could even live there if you wanted."
Oneakka frowned down from Massa's exuberance to Raven's silence.
"It also explains your exceptional fighting skills too," Massa continued unabated.
"People can have exceptional fighting skills from any planet," Raven argued though. "You two are proof enough of that."
"And you love Athosian tea," Massa continued cheerfully.
"Coincidence," Raven muttered.
"Well," Oneakka considered as they headed into the final corridor that led to Raven's quarters, "I have noticed that you seem to have similar tastes in food as Halling."
Raven rolled her chin on her hand to frown hazily up at him. "Are you really suggesting that I somehow subconsciously knew I was part-Athosian?" She scoffed.
He smiled down at her sleepy theory. "No, I was thinking more along the lines of inherited tastebuds."
"Like people from Aria can rarely eat anything spicy," Massa put in.
Raven didn't seem to have a response to that and looked forward, now slightly more slumped back in the wheeled chair. She was looking like she was running low on what little energy she'd had in the Healing Bay. It was a good thing they were almost at her quarters.
He suspected that it was going to take her some time, even once she had slept, to process this news about her family history. Her very identity had been altered, and he knew more than most how news about one's family could change your life in an instant.
Raven said nothing else through the last stretch of the walk, the final curving corridor revealing the door to her quarters up ahead.
"Here we go," Massa said brightly, breaking the silence, as he pushed the chair in an arc across the corridor so that it stopped directly facing her closed door. Raven reached up her left arm and the door sensor quickly recognised her Beacon, the door sliding open in front of her and the lights flickering on inside. Massa immediately rolled her onwards down the narrow hallway inside her quarters.
Oneakka held back at the doorway though, remembering how small her quarters were inside. There was probably only going to be enough space in her small main room for her, the chair and Massa, so he waited for Massa to help her out of the wheeled chair and onto her bed.
"Careful," Oneakka heard Massa saying from inside. "Take your time, Seeal."
Oneakka watched down the hallway as Massa stepped aside enough that Oneakka could see that Raven had left the wheeled chair, but not onto her bed, instead she was sat on the metal chair beside her small quarters table.
"Make sure you get as much sleep as you can," Massa was telling her. "If you need anything, you just ask, okay?" He was dipping forward and Oneakka saw Raven's arm appear behind Massa's upper back; they were hugging again.
"Thank you, Massa," Oneakka heard Raven say tiredly.
"Rest, you're under orders from me," Massa added as he started backing down the hallway towards Oneakka, pulling the wheeled chair back out with him. "And if this one gives you any trouble, Seeal, call me," Massa added as he backed out of her quarters level with Oneakka.
Oneakka gave him a good glare.
Massa grinned back. "Have a good night you two," he said as he reversed again, drawing the chair out of her doorway and he started away down the corridor.
"Thank you, Massa," Raven's voice drifted out of her quarters as Oneakka watched Massa leaving.
"Make sure you sleep too, Massa," Oneakka instructed him.
Massa waved vaguely over his shoulder as he disappeared around the curve of the corridor.
Oneakka focused forward and headed into Raven's quarters. The short hallway really was narrow, barely wider than his own shoulders. Ahead of him, Raven was sat in her chair, or 'slumped' would be a better description as it seemed that her elbow on the small table to her right was all that was keeping her upright.
As Oneakka moved out of the short hallway and into the single room space of her home, he heard her quarters door slide shut behind him. Stopping in the middle of her space, Oneakka glanced around. It was all exactly as he remembered. The small table and chair were in the left corner ahead of him, an open dark doorway in the wall to his left was the entrance to her bathroom, and to his right was her bed set in an alcove. He could literally reach almost every part of her quarters from where he stood.
It smelt nice in here, feminine and very Raven. The last time he had been in here, he had found it too much, too overwhelming and too female. Now…
He focused his attention forward on Raven. Behind her, running along the back wall of her narrow quarters were several shelves, in the centre of which stood her house plant, its healthy green leaves glowing under a small grow lamp directed down on it. It struck him that it was the very same plant that she had purchased on Saoka's station.
"I need to use the bathroom and change into my bedclothes," Raven announced and he quickly returned his full attention to her.
He considered Raven's weary face. "You sure you don't just want to sleep in your Healing Bay clothes?"
"No," she replied simply.
"Okay," he glanced away from her. Beyond the end of her bed there was a narrow but tall chest of drawers tucked into the right-hand corner, which presumably held her clothes. He was more than willing to find some bedclothes for her, but he suspected there would be some female underwear in the drawers and he wasn't sure he felt comfortable prodding around all that, and she probably wouldn't be either. But, a Warrior had to do whatever was necessary…
"Where are your bedclothes?" He asked her.
She looked up at him, one eye looking redder than the other. "In the bed, obviously," she supplied haughtily.
He grinned at the attitude and looked to his right at her well-made bed. Reaching easily across the tiny distance to the edge of her duvet, he pulled the top corner back to reveal her pile of pillows underneath, and tucked partly under the closest pillow were a folded top and trousers. He pulled them out, but, as he lifted them, he realised the top was his former shirt that he'd given her.
She slept in it?
He froze, looking down at her bedclothes in his hand.
Did it mean anything?
Or was it just a large comfortable top that she felt comfortable in.
That it had nothing do with the fact that it had been his shirt…
He had the abrupt, sudden impulse to sniff the top.
Snapping forcefully out of the moment, he cleared his throat as he thrust the bedclothes towards her.
"Thank you," she said very politely, but tiredly.
He watched as she drew the folded clothes against her chest, holding them against her with one forearm as she set her other hand on the table and started pushing herself upright. Oneakka stepped forward to help her again, holding one of her upper arms to give her some support.
She seemed weaker than in the Healing Bay and he felt her swaying while she was only halfway up. He moved up closer, squeezing in next to her by the chair to get his arm around her back as she stood fully upright.
"I'm okay," she volunteered without him asking.
"Just take your time, Raven," he assured her. "You remember my first steps in the Healing Bay after my injury."
"You muttered and whined the entire time," she exaggerated.
"Those were sounds of pain," he pointed out.
She had gotten herself more balanced on her feet and she felt more stable.
"Sounded like complaints to me," she bantered back as she started forward.
She was walking okay, but she didn't seem exactly strong on her feet and he could feel that she was leaning quite a bit of her weight into his support.
"Are you sure you're going to be able to manage in the bathroom by yourself?" He checked.
"I can manage just fine, Oneakka," she supplied with a confidence that didn't seem all that justified.
She stretched out one hand and gripped the frame of her bathroom door, and her weight eased away from him as she moved through the doorway. He held back, but kept one hand on her back.
"Don't lock the door," he instructed her. "I'll be just out here."
"You going to time me like on the Sythus?" She asked over her shoulder as she moved into the bathroom, its light flickering on as it sensed her arrive.
She stepped further out of reach so he dropped his hand away from her.
"That was a long time ago and you were a prisoner and a fight-risk," he pointed out. "Keep the door unlocked and shout if you need me."
She said something that he didn't make out, but he let it go as he watched her slightly limp into her bathroom and the door slid shut behind her.
And he was left alone in her room.
He turned and took the two steps back to the side of her bed. He pulled the rest of her duvet aside so she could easily climb in under it, and then started plumping up her four pillows. She'd done that for him repeatedly during his recovery, and though he'd sometimes found it annoying, he'd appreciated it. He set the pillows back in place and idly noticed that in the slot in the wall by the head of her bed, there was a bottle, an electronic pad and what looked like a slim worn book. Her bed prepared, he turned to the single chair and sat down to wait for Raven. He pulled his pad out of his Healing Bay top's pocket and set it down on her table.
As he did, his eyes fell on her Ugun guardian knife sat close by on its display box.
The guardian knife that had found its way from Father to Jin and to Raven, and was now sat here by him. He reached for the knife and ran his thumb over Father's blacksmith's mark in the centre of the hilt. The knife had been made in the old family forge and its abrupt recent appearance via Raven had been the sign that Oneakka had been waiting for after his vision. A blade spirit that had somehow found its way from Father's hand to Raven, to now...
Suddenly the sign that had been about his vision abruptly felt like it was now a sign about something else today.
Of all the females in the galaxy…
The bathroom door slid open and he snapped his gaze up, setting the guardian knife down on the table as he watched two hands appear, gripping either side of the doorframe, and then Raven appeared between them.
He watched her shuffle further into view, wearing his shirt to go to bed.
He'd never believed in signs or romantic love, but the last few months had seemed to have changed a lot.
Raven paused and looked round at him, and then frowned. "What?" She demanded.
"Nothing," he quickly replied.
Her dark, tired eyes narrowed at him with her suspicious 'Security Lead' look.
"You're looking at me funny," she accused him.
"I was just noticing that you sleep in my shirt," he told her honestly, well mostly.
Her eyes widened and she dropped her head to look down at her own chest, clearly not having registered which shirt she'd put on…which implied she wore it to bed a lot.
"Well, it's my shirt now," she argued instantly and focused her attention forward towards her bed.
He was almost certain there was a faint flush of red to her pale cheeks.
"I can wear my shirt whenever and wherever I want," she stated as she limped towards the waiting bed.
Oneakka stood up, ready to catch her as she crossed in front of him, but she'd made the short distance.
"It's too big anyway," she continued as she crawled onto her mattress, reaching for her duvet to cover herself. "You stretched it all out," she complained about his normal-sized shirt.
Definitely embarrassed about the shirt-wearing. Why exactly, he couldn't be sure right now, but he was smiling as he reached for her duvet, taking over pulling it up over her as she laid down. She let him and instead focused her attention on arranging her four plumped pillows into a semicircle around her head. Once she was happy with the arrangement, she settled down onto her side, facing towards the wall, her back to him.
As she settled, he adjusted the top of the duvet over her upper shoulder. "Do you need anything, Raven?" He asked as he fussed a little over the top corner of the duvet against her back. "Water?"
"I've got some here," she replied as she gestured towards the bottle in the wall slot.
"Breathing feeling okay?" He checked next as he reached down her bed to where the blue blanket she'd bought on Bakhau during their shopping trip was neatly folded. He shook it out over the top of her duvet to add another layer. She liked to be warm.
"Feels fine," she supplied as she adjusted a pillow under her cheek. "Do you want me to leave a light on?"
"I can manage, you need to sleep," he replied.
"You could leave the bathroom light on," she suggested. "Or the lamp over the plant?"
Glancing to the little glowing lamp above the plant, he nodded. "Okay, I'll keep that on if it doesn't disturb you."
"Disturb me," she mocked as she burrowed in against her pillow arrangement and under the top of her duvet and blanket, "I've fallen asleep with far worse things around me."
"No doubt," he agreed as he decided he was happy with her blanket. That done, he set about tucking the duvet and blanket layers down around her shape, keeping a polite distance from her, but it would help seal in the warmth around her a little better.
"You want a book to read or something?" She asked.
"I've got my pad," Oneakka reassured her, moving down the end of the bed to tuck in the covers around her feet. "You comfortable?"
"Yes," she replied. "You don't need anything like water, food?"
"I'll order something delivered from the Canteen if I do," he assured her.
"Okay," she uttered as she reached to the control panel inside the wall slot and the lights shut off.
The plant's little lamp glowed from its shelf as Oneakka turned from her and reached for her chair, pulling it up alongside the end corner of her bed.
He sat down with a sigh and set his left elbow on the edge of her bed, just about level with her feet. His eyes were slowly adjusting to the change in light levels, but he could see enough for him to doublecheck her covers were okay. He watched as she shifted, perhaps nestling deeper into the warmth. He suspected it wouldn't take her long to fall asleep, though sometimes having someone in your space could be off-putting for some people.
"Thank you for being there on the planet," she said quietly into the silence. "For bringing me home."
"Any time," he replied.
He heard her burrow again and heard a sleepy yawn.
He shifted on the chair, making sure he was comfortable for his vigil.
"But don't think I've forgotten that you need to apologise to Ru," she added.
It was the first reference to their big fight.
"Sleep, Raven," he replied simply.
There was a soft sound that could have been a word or a sigh from her, but all that followed was her breathing deepening. He focused intently on the sound in the silence of her quarters, making sure he could hear it easily, and listened as her breathing slowed and deepened further, almost certainly already asleep.
And he kept listening, making sure he was attuned to the steady sound of her natural breathing so he would recognise if it changed in the night.
The plant lamp's light, though effective enough for him to see her, barely reached to the head of her bed in the gloom, and the far end of her hallway ahead of him was lost in the depth of darkness.
As he watched the black shadows that filled the hallway, listening to Raven's steady soft breaths, he realised he was feeling very tense. He was sat upright from the supportive back of the chair and he was acutely aware of any little sound around him. The soft click of the overhead light settling as it cooled, the faint creak of the small air vent set high in the far wall…his senses felt hyperalert. As if he were on a mission, standing guard, watching for a possible attack.
Not sat safe in the Facility.
Why was he suddenly feeling so on edge?
He realised that he'd sat facing the only entrance into her quarters, with the single light source behind him so that it would blind the eyes of whoever might attack. He knew exactly where the guardian knife was on the table just behind his right shoulder, well within easy reach if needed, and he was sat close enough to Raven that, should the need arise, he could easily scoop her up further into her bed's alcove out of view of the entrance, or sweep her quickly across through the open door to the bathroom as the only defensive position.
He was behaving like he was in enemy territory, rather in the secure space of the Facility.
He was in Raven's quarters to make sure she didn't have any breathing difficulties in the night, not to watch out for a possible invasion.
Yet he couldn't mistake the compulsive urge to be aware of everything, to watch and listen carefully, to be ready for anything.
But that wasn't appropriate or necessary, so he forced himself to relax his shoulders and rest back against the chair, willing his body to be calm. As he did, he noticed that, at some point, he'd moved his left arm from lying along the edge of Raven's bed, to now lying along the foot of her bed, slightly curved around her feet.
Protectively.
He frowned at his arm in the low light.
He didn't remember making the decision to move his arm, or even why he thought it necessary to be that protective of Raven.
But he did. And he could recognise now the deep compulsion, which he'd also felt on Saoka's planet when he'd held Raven against him in the Transport.
An instinctual need to hold her, to keep her safe.
He'd never had any interest in foolish misguided beliefs of true love and romantic tales, and this wasn't any sort of weak ethereal sense of romance, it was instead a deep determined urge to sit watchfully by her side. It felt primitive and physical rather than just thoughts and changeable feelings.
The primitive instinct to protect one's mate.
Except she wasn't his mate, and despite his own recent revelation about the line between them, Raven had been keeping firmly to that line all this time as well.
He wasn't actually sure why, because it was the one subject that they never talked about. Well, one time they had discussed it in passing, during which Raven had made fun of the mere idea of a Pit Fighter and Elite Warrior together. He'd agreed wholeheartedly at the time that it would be foolish, but now…now it made all kinds of sense to him.
But verbally sparring with each other had gotten out of control recently, especially in their last fight.
He could remember the panicked reaction he'd felt at her demanding forcefulness in that fight, the sudden urge to kiss her followed by the horrible recollections of losing his people…people he'd loved and who had loved him.
That fight had begun because of how he'd talked to Ru, in a way that she'd deemed aggressive…had it been? He tried to think back, but it wasn't like he was known to be sweet and passive when talking with people.
Maybe that was part of the problem, he considered as he glanced along Raven's sleeping form, her breathing still steady and even.
He recalled feeling jealous of Ru in that project room, seeing the way the other male had looked up at her, all pathetically soppy and endearing…full of intentions towards her.
The tension poured back through his body at the mere memory.
And Smee in the Canteen that time, the way the male had looked at her, full of predatory intent of desiring her when she had no interest in the Security male. Oneakka had put a stop to that just by looking firmly at Smee across the Canteen, but then Raven had heard that he'd glared at Smee and gotten cross with him, sparking off a fight.
He didn't regret anything he'd said in their fights, but, perhaps, he'd been fuelled a little too much by feelings of jealousy? This deep visceral urge to protect her and keep her for himself, jealously guarding her despite not having wanted that connection with her before now.
But she'd seemed to keep to the line so easily.
There was clearly a physical attraction between them, so that wasn't the problem. But maybe she did prefer Ru's type, all quiet and polite. Someone who didn't willingly walk onto an irradiated Hive ship as he'd done. A Pit Fighter and an Elite Warrior probably weren't a combination who would ever live a peaceful, passive life. Maybe she wanted something peaceful and easy after the difficult life she'd had so far?
Or maybe she didn't want a permanent male in her life at all. Perhaps she didn't see the value considering how she'd had to battle hardships all by herself throughout her life.
Though, in his mind, an Elite Warrior would make an excellent partner for her, able to defend and protect her, as he was instinctively doing for her now against absolutely no threat whatsoever.
Raven was a very practical female so he'd have to offer her real things like that, skillsets she valued and wanted in her life.
But, without exactly knowing how he knew, he was pretty certain that, if he were to make his intentions clear right away, that she'd shy away. She'd lived her entire life protecting herself, and she frequently referred to him as a "difficult oaf", which didn't seem like something she valued.
No, he was going to have to be strategic about this, use his own skillset effectively.
He needed to show her his worth first, how he could fit into her life.
Then he'd make his intentions clear, and if she then turned him down, at least he'd done all he could.
So, his first step was working out exactly what it was he could offer her that she would value.
And, in turn, what he wanted as well.
Fortunately, he had plenty of time tonight to sit and think about it.
0000
TBC
