"That okay, Marina?... Marina?"
Troy said her name a second time. Marina blinked, coming back to herself, and looked up. The others were all looking back at her waiting. With various levels of concern.
"Heh. You zoned out real far there." Phones said. He made it a joke. But like his smile it seemed a little strained at the edges.
Marina blushed and signed sorry. Then shuffled off the table to stand back up, hugging the shock blanket around her.
"Yeah, come on let's go get you sat down on an actual seat." Troy agreed hand on her shoulder to guide her ahead of him again. Then looking about, Troy realised they were still in the access corridor. "Actually, scratch that, Let's get you upstairs."
Marina nodded. And was mildly embarrassed to admit, (even just to herself) it took her a split second to find her land legs as they set off walking again. While perfectly poised, Marina felt as if there was a tide swaying inside her.
"Atlanta was right," Marina sighed, "I feel a mix up. Too much of everything and happy, sad, and numb all at once."
Marina was the centre of their little pack. Trying not to think of the armed escort she'd been flanked with down pink coral hallways, Marina instead focused on the back of Shore's chair and put one foot in front of the other.
"Like I was saying, sir, I don't think they let Marina sleep or eat down there." Troy continued. "Not properly at least. Once the adrenaline wore off, I thought she was gonna pass out on us."
"She's certainly in worse shape than when you boys got out of Titania the first time." The commander frowned.
"Yeah." Phone's chimed in. "We all dozed a bit on the 'fish. But not all that well, you know? Not actually sleeping."
"That true Marina?" The commander asked her.
Marina nodded. Then wished she hadn't. Nodding and shaking her head were the easiest way to communicate to her friends. but now Her head hurt. Ached even. She felt cold and dry, even with the warmer land temperature.
"No wonder she's feeling lousy." The commander said. "Give her some space for crying out loud."
"Shame. Luigi had a party planned at Blue Lagoon for you, Marina." Fisher said kindly, holding open another door for them. "Let's wait till you feel better, eh?"
"The champagne's on ice anyway. Troy's been prescribed steroids and it ain't ever good to mix them with alcohol." Phones told her stage grumbled.
Marina blinked and turned to look up at him with a frown. She knew what 'prescribed' meant. Not the other word he'd said Troy had.
"Well technically he still got hospital ointments till he's all clear medical wise." Phones told her.
"I heard that!" Troy from behind them. "Traitor."
"Now skipper you can't say jack to me." Phones replied. "You weren't even meant to be out of bed yet."
Marina stopped short Shocked. So suddenly that Troy and Atlanta both bumped her. Troy complained with "What gives-?"
But Marina was furious and upset, realising what Phones had meant. Earlier too. And a lot of what the commander had said when he and Troy had argued.
Marina Swung around so fast she lost her blanket. And she poked Troy in the chest.
"How could someone so very brave and smart be so stupid at times?! Bad enough you and Phones put yourselves in danger for me! But you did it while still poisoned!? Why? Why do that Troy?" Marina scolded. And called him many many names. Not that he heard.
"The last time I saw you before- well you had a land machine breathing your air for you for the shell's foundations! You were cold! Are all land people this foolish or is it just you? You could have been killed, AGAIN! Why would you risk coming to Titanic while sick?!"
"Oh, she's mad at you captain!" Fisher laughed. Troy however scoffed.
"Yeah yeah. Don't worry about me, Marina." He scoffed, batting her flapping hand.
"She swam out to sea to save your hide Tempest. I think Marina's entitled to be a little worried." The commander growled, while His daughter was pulling the blanket back over Marina's shoulders. Atlanta's hands were warm on Marina's upper arms, pulling her away a little so she wasn't so much in Troy's space. Marina's lungs felt like they were working too hard again.
Troy pouted at the telling offs. Marina pouted back at him. The look on Atlanta's face however had them both flinching.
"Agreed. Maybe now Marina's back, Troy I hope you'll actually listen to the doc to rest?" Atlanta said. Rather acidly. Troy withered. Marina winced in sympathy and smiled at the same time amused. She wouldn't want to be in Troy's terrain shoes right now.
"To be in range of One of the Shores, when either of them were in one of their moods is bad enough. Both? At the same time? No thank you."
Speaking- well thinking of which.
"Will you all quit fooling around?" The commander must be really in a bad mood now. "Let's get a move on and quit blocking up the corridors. Some other folks have got work to do down here!"
They'd reached the elevators that fed into the main control of the tower. And the commander jabbed the button with such a demand, had it been alive it might have cowered. He spoke gently to her though. Not so much the others.
"Go on Marina, in you get. Phones? With me, in case she needs a hand again or something. This isn't the boy scouts, move it. I wasn't kidding when I said we needed a debrief! Just 'cos your crew champion of the hour will not save any of us from dam paperwork!"
Marina gulped. Fisher gave an encouraging squeeze of her (thankfully good) shoulder and gently pushed her forward. Phones and the Commander hustled her into a small elevator (with a "ladies first.") And went on ahead. Fisher and Atlanta Troy waited for another one; the latter bickering quietly like an old promised-to-one-another couple as the silver doors shut.
The elevator shuddered as they always did, then began to creep up. The lifts were notoriously slow. Some design flaw that seemed to counterbalance the injector tubes breakneck speed. Phones pointed out as the numbers went up. There wasn't much space in the little box. Unlike the big service lifts for moving computers and things, these personal elevators were clearly made with the commander's chair in mind and not much else. Or many people else.
Marina normally held some mistrust towards elevators, other than pressing the buttons. Some on land were like the ones at home, clear to see out of. But these tower ones weren't, and she didn't like the not being able to see where she was going. She was very glad to save walking any further though.
Phones and the commander were still discussing things. Marina, not really listening to what they were saying, lent back against the wall. And glanced to her side at the movement that caught her eye. Marina then caught sight of her reflection in the mirrored panels and recoiled.
It was her first time seeing it properly; colours and all. She didn't like it. Especially not under the bright light. When Marina looked in the mirror, she saw a stressed and frazzled being looking back at her. And still so scared, almost childlike looking, despite the relief of returning to base. Like it wasn't herself she was seeing, someone faraway instead. It certainly didn't feel like herself. It didn't look real. Her pale face looked shallow, with dark shadows and her pink scrubbed raw hands. The scratches, (healed and not) looked so sore. The yellow and blue of the bruises looked worse than it felt.
"No wonder everyone is upset to look at me!"
"Don't poke it!" Phones said suddenly, catching her hand as Marina had felt the split on her lip. Marina jumped at the telling off mild as it was. "We'll get that looked at too, don't worry."
"Nearly there, kid." The commander agreed.
"Kid?" Marina frowned. Then decided she'd ask another time.
The elevator hummed on. Marina Shut her eyes to it and turned away from the mirror, feeling small and Tired.
"I know, you just want to rest, eh?" Phones asked with a nudge. Marina agreed.
And slipped one hand about his wrist. She pressed her forehead to his shoulder ignoring the of his epilates.
"Stop being so serious," she told Phones. Not that he heard. But she told him anyway. And repeated it with fingers fumbling. Even with the commander there.
(Shore cheered his throat and made a point of looking intently at the control panel of his chair. Marina pretended not to notice that either.)
She wanted her easy-going friend to feel better. For Troy to calm down. For things to be back to normal. He was right though. Marina felt she was struggling to keep her eyes open.
"Yes, a rest sounded kind of nice actually."
A rest. A drink. Something to eat. And a swim, feel sea water through her hair! Or failing that just a too-warm soak in a pool or a shower. Even on land where the dials didn't make sense. To just relax with her friends. To see her father too…
Marina bolted upright.
"Starfish! Had he heard about all this? Titan had promised he'd hear of the recapture and Troy's death. And if father did, did he know I am safe yet?"
But in everything going on Marina had forgotten about her father… and she felt guilty and upset for that.