Amelia could see the inferno getting larger and larger. Her heart raced in her ears, muffling the other sounds around her. Doppler's horrified face grew to despair as they got closer to the certain death awaiting through the portal. He kept the ship steering towards the portal as B.E.N. finished his countdown. Amelia's stomach flipped.

The Legacy burst out of the portal, gliding through the starry etherium. A cool breeze brushed Amelia's face as she realised they survived. Still full of adrenaline, she jumped up and ran to embrace Delbert, pulling him as close to her as possible. He wrapped his arms around Amelia and a warm smile lit across her face.

Realising what she was doing, Ameila pulled back, suddenly on full alert. A small blush crept across Delbert's face as he pulled back, but the two smiled at each other knowingly.

Jim jumped back onto the deck, whooping at the stunt he just pulled. Delbert eagerly went down to meet him, Amelia following.

"Unorthodox, but ludicrously effective." She told Jim as they reached him. "I'd be proud to recommend you to the Interstellar Academy. They could use a man like you."

Jim smiled at the Captain before turning to Delbert. "Wait until your mother hears about this!" Delbert exclaimed excitedly, before adding "Of course, we may downplay the life threatening parts." Jim laughed at that. Amelia took a step back to watch the excited boy, her heart still racing. Delbert put his arm around Amelia comfortingly. She smiled at him, forgetting her position as Captain for a second. Jim suddenly ran off, presumably to find that wretched pirate Silver. Which reminded Amelia…

"What now Captain?" Delbert asked her, taking his arm off her. The adrenaline was wearing off on Amelia, and she could feel the sharp pain in her side returning.

"We need to send out a mayday." Amelia told him, standing straight, returning to her position. "We don't have a crew to sail this ship into port, and I doubt the authorities didn't see the large explosion we sailed out of."

"Aye Captain." Delbert agreed. Amelia turned to go to the communications, subtly putting a hand to her side, but Delbert noticed. "Captain, allow me. Go to your state room and rest."

"I'm fine Doctor," Amelia told him, but he ignored her, steering her to the stateroom.

Amelia allowed him to sit her down at her desk, her pain having fully returned. "Doctor, do you know how to use a mayday signal?" She asked him with an edge in her voice.

"Actually, I do." Delbert told her. "I read up on it before the voyage."

"Of course you did." She rolled her eyes, which hurt more than it should have. Her eyes fluttered suddenly, and she gently swayed.

"A-are you sure you're alright Captain?" Delbert asked her softly, putting a hand on her good arm.

"I've been better." Amelia said plainly. She leant back into her chair and shut her eyes. "Go send out the mayday Doctor. The sooner the better."

"Aye Captain." Delbert softly replied.

Delbert furiously typed in the Mayday message, putting in their coordinates. 'Pirates in custody, no crew, Captain injured, engines broken.' He wrote briefly, before sending it out. He watched as Jim came back onto the deck, Morph following.

"Is Silver…?" Doppler started, seeing the tears in Jim's eyes.

Jim smiled at him. "I let him go." Doppler knew how much Silver meant to the boy, so he just nodded. "Where's the Captain?"

"In her stateroom." Delbert told him. "She's still quite injured."

Jim nodded. "Can we move? I think our engine's busted."

"We're stranded for the meantime, but I've just sent out a Mayday." Delbert reassured him. "Help should be on the way shortly."

Jim looked at him, then nodded. Delbert turned away to the control pads. Jim walked over to the side of the ship to gaze out at the etherium. He could see the spaceport not too far away, where tiny dots represented the massive ships flying around it. His mind wandered to his Mother and what she was doing right now. It felt so weird to be so close to her, yet so far away.

After a few minutes, Jim noticed a few of the dots got bigger, heading towards them. Another few minutes, he could see small lights flashing around them.

"Delbert, I can see someone coming our way!" Jim called out to the Doctor, who was standing on the quarter deck. Doppler looked where Jim was pointing, a smile lighting across his face.

Amelia rested her head in her hands. The pain in her side made her head swim, but she had to remain diligent. So she had opened her Captain's Log, and had been writing down the recent events since her last log. But she'd only done half a page before closing the book, exhausted. She didn't allow herself to fall asleep though, and would jerk up when she noticed herself dropping off.

When she heard some commission out on deck, Amelia's head pricked up. She sat back in her seat, clutching her side, in case someone came in. Her mind turned over the thought of the pirates having escaped, and she glanced at the pistol on her desk. The door swung open, and, grabbing the pistol, Amelia stood. Head swimming, she raised the pistol defensively. "Stay back," She told the blurred forms in the doorway. "Pirates…?" Her eyes focused and she saw two aliens in military uniforms rush to her side. They pushed her back into her chair, taking the pistol off her gently. "State your… business." Amelia tried to sit up, but was pushed back into her chair.

One alien pulled her blood-stained Captain's coat off her to see her wound. Amelia hissed as her shoulder was jostled, the pain leaking into her nervous system. The other military alien was trying to speak to her, but she couldn't hear what they were saying. Her eyes opened and closed slowly as she tried to stay alert. "Please gentlemen… refrain from… from touching my si-side." Amelia told the alien looking at her injury. She tried to sit up when a sharp pain came from her side, but one of the aliens held her to her seat. A groan escaped her lips as another jolt of pain came over her. She squeezed her eyes shut, gasping as the alien applied pressure to her blood wound. She must have blacked out for a second, as she found herself slumped back in her chair.

One alien was at the door, gesturing for a third alien to enter the room. The third alien carried a stretcher, which was laid on the floor near her desk. Amelia felt strong arms slide under her good side. The soldier lowered her onto the stretcher with the guidance of the others. The change in elevation made her head swim. An alien told her to stay still while she was strapped on, one of them pouring a strong smelling liquid over her side. It made her hiss in pain, but she didn't protest, digging her claws into the side of the stretcher. Her vision continued to swim and she could only see blobs in front of her now. Something was put over her mouth which added to her drowsiness, and Amelia's eyes shut.

Delbert rested his hand on Amelia's arm. Her soft breathing had increased since he had arrived, which according to a Felinid nurse who had passed through was a sign she was regaining consciousness.

Amelia's eyes flickered open slightly, blinded by the bright lights above her. She could see the outline of a Candid figure next to her, and as her nervous system caught up with her, a soft hand on her arm.

"D-Doctor…?" Amelia asked the figure, trying to blink her eyes open. As her eyes adjusted to the lights she could make out a recognisable face behind a pair of round glasses.

"I'm here Captain." The man reassured her, gently squeezing her arm. Amelia opened her eyes properly to make out where she was.

Amelia found herself lying on a bed in a plain white room. There was a small table to her left and a few monitoring screens behind it, gently beeping at what she suspected was her heart rate. Amelia gently pushed herself more upright in her bed, running a hand through her hair.

"Terribly sorry for dropping out on you Doctor. Do tell me where we are?" Amelia asked Delbert, who had taken a seat beside her.

"The Montressor Hospital Captain, in one of the recovery wards." Delbert told her.

"And how long have I been here?"

"Two days." Delbert told her.

Amelia sat right up in her bed. "I think that's about enough time spent in unconsciousness, don't you? I feel fine. Call a nurse so I may be dismissed."

"Er, I'm not sure how that works…" Delbert trailed off when she glared at him. He sighed in submission and pressed a button sitting near Amelia's head.

A minute later a Candid nurse entered the room carrying a clipboard. She noticed Amelia pulling at the IV chord in her arm and rushed over.

"Please don't pull at that Ma'am." The nurse insisted, putting Amelia's hands by her side.

"Then can you please remove them yourself?" Amelia replied. "I have no need for tubes in my arm."

"The Doctor will be here soon if you wish to have the IV removed earlier than planned." The nurse gave Amelia a glare. "If you can wait ten minutes, he should be through shortly." And with that the nurse left the room.

Amelia groaned and leant back into the pillows. "Can you believe her Doctor? I have no need to be here."

"In all politeness Captain, you have been unconscious for two days." Delbert told her. "Which indicates you may…" He once again trailed off at her glare.

"If I required medical assistance, Doctor, I would ask for it." Amelia huffed. She crossed her arms and left the two in an awkward silence.

After a minute, Amelia spoke. "I'm sorry Doctor, for being… rude, in a manner, to you. I just wish to be rid of this experience."

"I understand Captain." Delbert replied. "I wouldn't want to be in your shoes."

"Speaking of which…" Amelia now came to realise her Captain's uniform had been taken off, and she was wearing a disgustingly coloured hospital gown. "Have you any clue where my uniform is?"

"I believe it is in the drawer here, Captain. For collection later." Delbert opened a drawer which contained Amelia's uniform. She could see her boots tucked next to the drawer.

"Good. I'd hate to have to order a new one. The waiting queue can take months, and I don't think the organiser of that list likes me very much." Amelia shut her eyes, trying to fight the tiredness that had come back on her. She suddenly remembered her reason for being here and instinctively reached to her side to find blood, but found her fingers touched a thick layer of bandages and numbness.

The Doctor walked in to find his most recent Feline patient prodding at her wound. "Ma'am, I wouldn't recommend doing that." He told her as he walked over. "You're on heavy duty painkillers, and that wound is still quite fresh."

Amelia looked up to this Cragorian Doctor walking over to her. He was small for his species, probably only a head taller than herself. She took in his appearance as he continued. "I am Doctor Boyd. I've been working here for around 70 years, yet your story is the most interesting one concerning a patient in my ward. According to Mr. Doppler's story, you were attacked by a mutiny of pirates, escaped onto an uncharted planet which held Flint's treasure, then escaped said planet through an ancient portal right before it exploded, the portal taking you to the other side of the galaxy. Does this sound right?"

"Basically. Though it was a lot more dramatic than you make it sound." Amelia informed the Doctor. He smiled a half smile at her, barely believing a word of the story. He was old, around 200, and had lost interest in such stories of pirates and treasure. They were mere myths, but he did remember the times of Captain Flint.

"Now Ms Smollet-"

"Captain Smollet if you please." Amelia interrupted.

"Captain Smollet. We've had a look at your external wounds, and will have to stitch up the wound after we've done some X-Rays and tests-"

"Whatever for?" Amelia interrupted again. "I feel fine, the rest will only take a cup of tea to fix-"

"Captain Smollet," Doctor Boyd cut her off, "with all due respect, we think you may have some internal damage, certainly a broken rib, and we need to run tests to make sure you haven't sustained any life-threatening injuries."

"Wouldn't I be dead if that were the case?" Amelia argued.

"No, but you could be soon if you refuse to let us examine you." The Doctor told her forcefully. "You have your first Examination in an hour. You should have your results back within a week-"

"A week!" Amelia yelled. "Doctor, I cannot be kept here for a week! I have a ship to run and-"

"Captain, you shan't be spacing for quite a while, especially if you refuse to cooperate with us. So I would recommend finishing this argument and allowing me to tell you the order of procedures to ensure you can return to your post as quickly as possible. But if you don't, I will have no problem making sure you don't leave this hospital until you are fully recovered, which by my standards could take at least a month or two." Doctor Boyd told her calmly, which only made her more irritated. Amelia glared at him for a long minute before sinking into her pillows, defeated. Boyd relaxed his shoulders and continued. "We'll do your X-Rays in an hour, which will tell us if you have broken any bones. Then, we'll examine your organs around the wound to ensure none of them were injured. After this is done, we'll stitch you up, and will start your treatment."

"And how will all of that take a week to complete?" Amelia grumbled.

"Just processing the results, Captain. Now, I'll leave you to be until your X-Ray. We'll need you awake for the scan, so if you'd be kind enough not to drop off on us, it would be greatly appreciated." The Doctor nodded to her, before turning to leave.

Once he was gone, Amelia let out an enraged groan. 'Who does he think he is, commanding me around? I'll see he-"

"Captain," Delbert interrupted, standing up to place his hand on her arm again, "I understand you have grown a deep disliking to this place over the last few minutes, but please know they're trying to help you. You don't like them because of their roles keeping you here, but don't forget they only mean the best."

"Who are you, my therapist?" Amelia grumbled.

"You go to therapy?" Delbert asked her. Amelia blushed, realising what she said.

"I-I, well yes. I used to. For military purposes." Amelia looked away, suddenly aware how much of her personal life could be exposed from such a small slip up of information. "But Arrow was more useful to me than a therapist was." She cursed herself for continuing to speak. When did her mouth learn to slip up like this?

Amelia chose to turn her thoughts to anything else. "How is young Hawkins?" She asked him.

"Jim? Oh, he's fine, spending time with his dear mother Sarah. She almost choked on her tea when Jim told her about the last few months."

"Poor woman." Amelia remarked. She could only imagine the horror Sarah must have felt after hearing how her only child had almost died multiple times.

"She's been keeping Jim quite close recently, keeping him mostly in the inn. Poor boy may never see the light of day again." Delbert told her half heartedly. Amelia noticed his change in mood.

"Is something the matter Doctor?" She asked him. Delbert shook his head.

"Nothing, Captain. I am just relieved we all survived the horrifying events of escaping a mutiny and an exploding planet within 24 hours of each other." Delbert told her, looking blankly at the wall beyond her.

"I don't want you to dwell on that Doctor. I assure you it was in my best interest to keep you and Mr. Hawkins from being killed. And had we not been captured, I'm sure we would have escaped the planet soon after landing there."

"But Captain, you were gravely injured-" Delbert insisted.

"Doctor, it is my job to protect my crew, and that is what I would have done. I'm tougher than would appear." Amelia informed him.

"I never meant to suggest you weren't tough Captain, merely that you could barely keep consciousness…" Delbert trailed off. Amelia sighed, not wishing to admit it to herself or anyone that she agreed with him.

"I know you mean well Doctor." Amelia told him, trying to give him a smile. She looked into his worried face and tired expression, making her wonder how long he had spent waiting by her side for her to wake. And this is how she had treated him. "I'm sorry for being grumpy."

"You have every right to be Captain." Delbert told her, looking down at her. "No one would wish to be in a hospital bed when they could be out sailing the Etherium. But I hope I can add some comfort to your time here." He blushed slightly, reaching his hand to hold hers.

She took his hand. "Thank you." She whispered.