Chapter 3: Two Days Later...

“Ugh ... ugh...!” The four recruits’ running, grunting, and heavy panting was enormous. The ringed passageway of the Lifen was an ever-lasting constant. It was both a great and straightforward act of ship engineering. And, it was a curse.

Enlai had seen the same doors over and over again. Crew members would regularly embed themselves to the bulkheads to avoid the charging recruits as they ran through the halls. Behind Enlai, Gavrill, Dariea, and Isandro were Stone and Ioren. The master sergeant had an excellent view of the four ahead of them. He was lightly panting but able to remain firm in his constant run. The thumping of boots was almost in unison. Unlike the last couple of days, Dariea’s appearance had changed. Her long hair had been cut really short.

Ioren had a form of natural grace in how she moved. This was nothing to her. She ran like a raptor that would never stop. Her magnetically wrapped talon feet would click and clop to the deck. Her breathing had picked up, but that was it.

The four recruits were all showing signs of extreme exhaustion. How long have they been running straight ahead? Was it twenty minutes? Half an hour? Each minute felt agonizing. Enlai’s legs were burning with pain. Sweat was pouring from his brow, as did the rest of the recruits. Only Gavrill seemed to adequately handle it, with Dariea being a close second. However, Isandro and he knew that they were struggling. Enlai was summoning the will to keep going.

“Come on!” Stone yelled at the four ahead of him. “Keep your asses moving! Fucking move it!”

“Argh!” Gavrill grunted. “Gavrill running on fumes, Master Sergeant!”

“Bull fucking shit!” He ran up the middle and ran alongside him. “I’ve seen crippled UHN sailors that can run circles around you! I have you in the front because I knew you could outrun these other lazy ass slobs! Look at you! Getting weak on me!?”

“No! Gavrill never tire!”

“The chief of security hasn’t even slowed down once. You expect to be able to fight!? I’m talking about all of you, marine maggots!”

“No ... Master Sergeant!” the four staggered replied.

“Ugh!...” Enlai’s legs were giving way. His running had started to fail, and he was slowing down drastically, causing Ioren to ease down in her running. Stone immediately saw it and slowed down his run to approach his side.

“Another one?” Stone angrily yelled at him. “What the hell is wrong with you!? You can’t handle a simple 6-kilometer run?”

“Trying! God damn ... fucking legs,” Enlai replied.

“Come on, Recruit Crinkle! You’re going to baby out on me!? Can’t pull your weight? How the fuck is the division going to survive if you start whimpering out on me? Huh!? Answer me!”

“Argh!” Enlai tripped and stumbled onto the deck. Weak and exhausted, he fell and smashed into the deck rather hard. Ioren came to a halt.

“Everyone halt now, Goddamn it!” Stone ordered.

“Aye ... Master Sergeant!” the three struggled to answer. The recruits came to a halt as their hands fell to the bulkheads. They were gasping for air.

“Get up! GET THE FUCK UP NOW!” The master sergeant grimaced and was over Enlai. His finger was almost jarred into the recruit’s face.

Enlai grunted as his arms and legs were like putty. He tried to stand up but fell to the deck again. Even with sheer adrenaline, there was pain coming from his wrist. Stone could see that he landed and impacted it rather hard.

“Come on! Ioren!” Stone grabbed Enlai’s non-damaged arm and lifted him up. Stone gestured to Ioren to come alongside the injured recruit, which she did. Enlai had enough strength to lean upon the Itrean woman. She carefully used her hands to grip him. Even with the weight pressed upon her, she could still handle it and help carry some of him. Stone walked ahead and addressed the entire division.

“You expect to make it through this!?” Stone yelled. “Can’t even make an easy run!? Do you expect the Itreans to treat you with mercy!?”

“No ... no ... Master Sergeant,” the others replied.

“Do you expect to outrun the Itreans if you were chased!?”

“No ... Master Sergeant.”

Stone clamped his hand into a fist and slammed it into his other hand. “Every UHN marine is expected to handle a 6-kilometer run! We are the first responders in times of an invasion! We are expected to be the first to fight back if the enemy strikes this ship! How the fuck are you going to do that if you are standing here passing out on me!? Huh? ANSWER ME!”

“Gavrill...,” Gavrill tried to respond. “Never ... gives up! Master Sergeant!”

“Recruit Farceur is only partially correct!” Stone pointed his finger at the division. “At the end of these two months, you will be able to know what it takes to be a marine! You will know how to follow orders. You will know how to run. You will know how to fight. You will know how to use a gun. How to shoot. How to repel boarding operations. How to fight terrorists. How to be THE BEST THAT THE UHN HAS TO OFFER!”

The four recruits were nodding their heads to Stone. Each of them had mean looks in their own particular way.

“Starting today!” Stone pressed on and put his hands behind his back. “You will know the basics of protecting your home and your division. Every time you sleep, you risk the possibility of the enemy coming in and slitting your throats. It’s the reason why this ship is manned and staffed 24/7. As other crew members sleep, it’s up to the others to keep this ship operational. It’s no different than how the marines have to handle this.” Stone pointed in the direction of the recruit berthing. “It will be up to you to protect and watch over your division as your buddies are sleeping. You will have watches posted at your door. You will be given body armor and carry unloaded holstered pistols for those watches. However, you will also understand the basics of forceful backup. This will be a two-team watch standard.”

“Permission to speak freely, Master Sergeant,” Dariea requested.

“What is it, Recruit Razor?”

“Two-person teams? There are only four of us.” Her breathing had stabilized, but she showed hints of protest upon hearing that.

“That is correct,” Stone explained. “I expect four-hour watch standards to be applied. This will be done every day until you guys finish your training.”

“We only have eight hours to sleep, Master Sergeant.”

“Do you have an issue with that, recruit!?” Stone snapped at her. He approached her and stood over her.

“No, Master Sergeant.”

“Good.” Stone looked at the rest of them with a mean look. “I expect common sense in how you perform these watches. You are responsible adults. You will stand guard outside these doors in this passageway where crew members are performing their daily duties. They have all been instructed not to interact with you. You will be silent and only allow the Captain, Ioren, or me inside unless I deem otherwise. There is a camera that is posted near the door watching you. If I see any deviation, you will understand the definition of pain, as I make you PT until you puke! Is that understood!?”

“Aye, Master Sergeant!” the four recruits replied. Yet, despite the affirmation, all four showed hints of resentment upon hearing what Stone said. Even Enlai understood enough of the concept of a port and starboard watch standards. Normally, night watches were handled with divisions of a hundred or more. This allowed the division to get more chances of adequate sleep. However, the fact that there were only four of them...

“Centurion Ioren,” Stone addressed her. “Take Recruit Crinkle to sickbay to treat for his injuries.” He then pointed his finger at Enlai. “As for you, don’t think that you’re getting out of training. The rest of the division will keep running until you rejoin them so we can complete our 6-kilometer run.”

“Aye, Master Sergeant,” Enlai replied. There was light groaning from Dariea and Isandro.

Stone then turned to the rest of the division as he walked up to a panel by one of the nearby doors. He balled his fist and pressed it to one of the buttons. It opened up a comms channel.

“Captain Shira, Master Sergeant Stone,” Stone called out. There was a momentary pause.

“Yes, Master Sergeant Stone,” the calm female voice replied back.

“Increase the ring’s rotation by 20%.”

“Understood.”

“Stone, out,” He shut off the panel and looked back upon the division. “It seems that this division needs to get themselves into shape! A nice increase in gravity should do the trick.”

“Ugh...,” the recruits groaned. Stone gestured to Ioren to do her thing and help bring Enlai to sickbay.

By now, Enlai’s wrist was hurting, but not excessively. He had caught enough of his breath that he was able to move around more freely. Ioren still helped him out as they turned around and began to head away from the division.

“Division, move out!” Stone yelled out.

“Aye, Master Sergeant,” the three recruits replied. Enlai felt the slightest relief that he was injured, but he could feel a little apprehension that the other three were still working hard. He turned to look at the Itrean woman.

“So...,” Enlai said. “You ... work on this ship. How is it?”

Ioren obviously couldn’t speak to him. Her smaller stature made her turn her head and look at him. Her pointed snout and crested head were much easier to see up close. She tried to be professional to him and knew that he was only trying to engage in small talk. However, she couldn’t talk back.

“Right...,” Enlai continued.

Enlai and Ioren could overhear the ship’s announcement as they continued to walk down the passageway. The executive officer addressed the entire crew through the overhead comms.

“Attention, everyone,” Javier said. “This is the XO. We will be increasing the spin of the Centripetal Ring. Expect an increase in gravity for all personnel that are in it. Javier, out.”

The channel closed, and there was a noticeable hum. The ring’s drive motor was increasing in speed at a slow rate. Even as Enlai moved, he could feel the slight increase and pressure on his legs.

“Damn...,” Enlai commented.

Ioren remained quiet. The two finally reached a set of closed doors. On it was labeled “Medical Bay,” written in both English and Chinese. She reached over and tapped the button to open up the door. They slid open, and the two walked into the room.

Inside the medical bay was a room that consisted of six medical beds that jutted from the deck. Sets of displays were relayed over each bed. Beside the beds were various medical equipment. Adjacent to this room was an enclosed office room and storage room of some sort. It was well-lit and seemed quite cozy.

As Enlai turned his head, he could see two individuals come walking toward him. One of these persons was a human male. He had a mixed complexion, most likely that of a person of Spanish and Chinese on former Earth. He had short-cut black hair with a goatee and wore a red and blue jumpsuit uniform. The rank of chief was on his insignia badge with the name Cayetano.

The other individual was a Shal’rein woman. She was around seven feet in height. She had light gray and smooth brown scales on her body. She had a tied-up bun on the back-right side of her purple hair, with short wavy hair on the other. She had protruding fins on her tail, arms, and legs. She was slightly chubby and wore a pink and white lab coat that covered much of her frame. Her yellow eyes and quick smile were apparent the moment that she saw Enlai and Ioren.

“Oh, looks like we got one,” the Shal’rein woman said in a light voice. Her accent reflected a similar Itrean accent.

“Who?” the chief replied as he turned to look at the door. “Oh...”

Both of the medics left the office. The chief looked upon Enlai, seeing the bruising that was gathering on his wrist. Ioren gestured to Enlai that she needed to free up her hands. He released his grip upon her as he moved over to the bed. Ioren pulled out her tilons as she activated her translation program. She began to key in her words.

“What appears to be the problem?” the chief asked. His voice was light and gave a faint Spanish accent.

“He is one of the marine recruits in training,” Ioren’s tilon translated out loud. “He injured his wrist when he fell upon it.”

“Oh dear,” the Shal’rein woman happily said. “Are you recruit Enlai?”

“Yes, ma’am,” Enlai replied.

“My name is Doctor Folar’sha, and this is Chief Cayetano. I will be attending to your wounds.”

Cayetano came up and looked upon the wrist. He was gentle and used his thumb to feel for abrasions before he stepped aside and let Folar’sha take over. The Shal’rein woman took her own tilon device and began to scan for damage.

“You fell on it? How did you fall on it?” Folar’sha was trying to confirm.

“Yes, ma’am. I landed on it from the front,” Enlai replied. The data on her screen told her what she needed to know.

“I’m picking up a minor wrist bone fracture on the right hand.”

“And the recommended treatment?” Cayetano replied. He appeared to be testing her knowledge.

“1 CCs of Epidroltine applied toward the bone.”

“Make that two. He is currently going through training purposes at the moment. I would also give him a dose of Marseasprin to help with the pain.”

“Right,” Folar’sha walked off as her tail would almost wag around. Enlai was still grasping his wrist and feeling it swell.

“Will he be able to continue for today?” Ioren asked through her tilon device.

“He will,” Cayetano replied.

“Umm ... wait,” Enlai commented. “My wrist hurts. I won’t be able to do exercises. Can I get a medical waiver?”

“Ummm,” Folar’sha replied, but she seemed to pause as she was getting the hypo sprays ready. She looked over to Cayetano.

“Oh no, you don’t,” the chief was adamant as he could see a faint smile come from Enlai’s face. “No, he’s not getting a medical waiver. You’re not worming your way out. Stone made it clear that unless it’s an absolute medical emergency, you’re not getting any special treatment due to something as small as a wrist sprang.” The chief pointed his finger at him. “I already checked, and that’s nothing. Nice try, but no.”

Enlai had to admit that the chief was seemingly friendly but adamant regarding certain actions such as these. He lightly cursed under his breath. Folar’sha had the two hypo sprays ready. She approached Enlai and injected the pain reliever into his hand. Immediately, the pain nerves began to shut down, and he could feel it getting better. The Shal’rein then took her other hypo and pressed it to the wrist itself. She injected it before she watched the medication work.

Immediately, the Epidroltine started to regenerate the damaged ligaments rapidly. As a result, any cracks in his wrists began to fuse together.

“Check for the swelling patterns,” Cayetano told Folar’sha. “What do you see?”

“It’s going away,” Folar’sha replied.

Enlai could get a mild sense that the two were close. Folar’sha felt warmer in how she spoke with the chief. He could now tell that this Shal’rein was still learning human anatomy. Her expertise wasn’t insufficient, but she needed a little coaxing to fully get it tuned. There was something else that he did notice as well. As Enlai looked more closely at her stomach, he could see that she wasn’t necessarily chubby, but it was something else. She was in the early stages of pregnancy.

“How is that, Enlai?” she asked.

“It...,” he paused as he flexed his hand. “I don’t feel any pain.”

“That’s good.”

“Now, take your fingers and run them across the wrist,” Cayetano directed her. “Tell me what you feel.”

Enlai could feel as the Shal’rein’s hand took her fingers and began to run it across the palm to his wrist. Her four-digit hand and large fingers were delicate in how she did her actions.

“Swelling is cutting down,” she replied. “Muscle tissue is repairing.”

“Alright,” Cayetano lightly slapped his legs. “Recruit Enlai, your wrist should be fully healed up within thirty minutes. You are free to return back to your division.”

Ioren, who had been quiet, turned to look at Enlai. The recruit shrugged his arms and walked to the door. When the door opened, he looked to his right. He appeared to be waiting for his division to come running up to join them.

“Ioren, can you wait a second?” Folar’sha asked her. Ioren turned to look at the towering doctor. She could see that she was happy.

Ioren’s feathers likely peaked before she did a series of quick nods. She lightly waited for Enlai to rejoin his division before she would speak with her. It wouldn’t be that long before Stone’s voice echoed in the passageway and flooded into the medical bay.

“Recruit Crinkle!” Stone yelled at him from a distance. “Get your ass back into the division! Move it! Move it!”

Enlai ran from the open entrance of the medical bay to disappear. Ioren waited for the doors to close before she turned around to head towards Folar’sha and the chief. Cayetano rested his body on one of the beds to brace himself. Folar’sha was activating one of the bed displays as if she was preparing something for Ioren.

“My mate, you don’t always have to look over my shoulder all the time,” Folar’sha told the chief. She wasn’t angry at him but was merely stating an observation.

“If you’re going to be working with humans more and more, then it’s good that I keep an eye on you,” the chief told her. “Every day, you learn something new. You’ll be the best Shal’rein doctor yet.”

Ioren could see that the two were particularly close. She already knew that they were a mated pair. Folar’sha had long been a member of Shira’s prior crew that had defected to the UWA. Supposedly, from what Ioren knew, the two met and fell in love on a patrol training exercise. This would further become a fiasco that led to the rather odd Battle of Charon. Because of Folar’sha’s medical expertise, she made a valued member of the Lifen’s crew. What became another bonus was the fact that she had met a human. Cayetano had been a veteran in the medical field, but his knowledge of Itrean physiology was limited. However, it was the fact that both had expertise in the other that worked. They were the perfect match for a ship with both humans and Itreans onboard.

Ioren still had her tilon at the ready as she typed in the lettering on her tilon.

“How are you adapting to the Lifen?” Ioren tilon translated.

“Oh, it’s wonderful,” Folar’sha said. “I get to be with my mate, and we have a whole room to ourselves. There is enough room for us to raise our baby. They even have a Gersin onboard to help babysit too. Shira was thinking of everything when she got command of a ship.”

“I just wish we had more corpsmen,” Cayetano added. “For a crew of 90, two isn’t enough to take care of the whole thing in a disaster. It also puts more strain on both of us.”

“Aren’t we getting a corpsman in four weeks?”

“Make that two months. Seaman Soroush has been delayed due to setbacks in the UHN medical corps school.” The chief crossed his arms. “Even then, he’s going to be greener than green.”

“I’m sure that Shira and Javier will find more medics.”

“At least four minimal for a staff.”

Ioren typed on her tilon. “I believe that Recruit Isandro has stated that he wants to cross-rate into a marine corpsman.”

“Really?” Cayetano’s eyes lightly widened. “As soon as he finishes up his training with Stone, I can get him started with it. Have to put in the paperwork for it, but yeah, I wouldn’t mind having him as a marine medic. If anything, we need a medic for the marine side of the ship as it is. Thank you for letting me know. I’ll pass the word to Stone to see if I can get started early for him.”

Ioren lowered her feathers a little bit as she typed. “I’m not sure. Stone is quite adamant in finishing their training.”

“That will be up to him, of course. I know the Master Sergeant enough in how he gets things done.”

“He most certainly does.” Ioren smiled as she finished typing the words for the tilon to state to him. Both of them smiled at each other.

“Ioren, I have a nice surprise for you,” Folar’sha explained to her.

Ioren looked at the display board of the screen. It showed an outline of an Itrean throat, specifically a Yutilian or Aksren. It was generic looking, but it had the bare silhouettes of the jaw, neck, top torso, shoulders, and face. A series of diagrams was lit up that displayed the various identifications of the different organs and muscles.

“What is this?” Ioren typed into her tilon.

“What I’ve been working on,” Folar’sha tapped a few buttons on a side panel by the bed. “I’ve been doing a lot of research into Yutilian and Aksren thyroarytenoid muscles.”

“In other words,” Cayetano said. “Vocal muscles.”

The Shal’rein woman walked up and pointed at the display. “I’ve been looking up into a way that I can help you out with your inability to speak, besides your tilon and hand language thingy. We might be getting close to finding something that will work.” She tapped another button to show a hollowed-out outline below the jaw and near the top of the neck. “We already know that you’re missing these muscles. That’s what makes it almost impossible for you to talk. I can conclude that this is a birth deformity. I don’t want to sound mean by saying that to you.”

Ioren lightly turned her head away. She was processing the information and gave a light nod to her.

“It saddens me that the T’rintar clan refuses to help you,” she continued. “I want to make it clear that I find the act shameful and that it doesn’t represent the proper practices of Itrean medicine. I told you that I would look into it, and I have.”

“It’s alright,” Ioren typed.

“I’ve been putting my time to ensure that I can fix your problem, and there might be ... a solution.”

Folar’sha tapped the panel button several times as she showed what looked like a vat. It was used for growing essential organs. Then, she pointed at the screen again.

“Now...,” Folar’sha continued. “It might be possible that we can grow a set of vocal cords for you and surgically attach it to your body. If it works, you will have the ability of basic speech.”

There was a hint of happiness in the doctor’s snout. The words sank into Ioren’s mind like an anchor. Her feathers had risen and fallen. She put her tilon on the bed and put her hands together in relief. It was easy to tell from Folar’sha that Ioren was ecstatic to hear the news. Even Cayetano briefly smiled as well. A “ However “ was coming, and Ioren could spot it from the doctor’s tone.

“Now, keep in mind, I don’t have a good diagram of a woman of your type. I know that you are part Aksren and part Yutilian. This sort of medical work is not my full field of expertise. I know a lot of basic medicine and surgery for Shal’rein, but it’s less when it comes to Yutilians, Aksren, and humans. The fact that you are both puts me at a difficult disadvantage. I know how to regrow organs but not modify them for you to use them...” she sighed. “Nor can I find an Itrean doctor that would work to improve this, but I can grow a set of Yutilian vocal cords.”

“There will be a number of problems that can arise,” Cayetano explained. “Even if we grow a set, your body might reject it. Even if the T’rintar clan isn’t going to help you, I have made efforts to contact staff members and heads of various medical research. The UWA stands by your side, Ioren. We have been looking into a procedure. Keep in mind that it would be an experimental procedure.”

“Yes,” Folar’sha nodded.

“What we are going to do is use nanites. They will be coded to seal the tubes and tissue into your throat and neck.”

“I know enough on coding that I can trick your body into keeping it. However, without the proper information on DNA sequencing and the fact that I don’t have samples of others that are like you ... it might not be perfect. This won’t be easy, but if we can do this, you will at least have basic speech.”

“It might be painful to speak,” Cayetano added. “You might be able to get one- or two-word sentences, but you would be able to say words in low volume. In other words, you wouldn’t be able to yell, but you could talk.”

“I will promise that...,” Folar’sha paused in her explanation. Ioren’s eyes began to fill with tears. She put her scaly hands to her face as she leaned onto the nearby bed. The chief and the doctor could hear her breathing, reminiscent of crying.

“Awww ... there, there,” the Shal’rein woman approached and put her huge hand on Ioren’s shoulder. Ioren responded by wrapping her feathered arms around Folar’sha’s waist. The Shal’rein patted the Itrean’s back as there was genuine sympathy on her face. It was brief, but Ioren withdrew from her and grabbed her tilon. She began to type in words. She controlled her crying and started to recompose herself. There was a lot that needed to be said.

“I’m so happy,” the tilon translated. “It doesn’t matter if you can give me a little or all of it. You’re making an effort to help me. I had some that had helped me from time to time when the others didn’t care. A Shal’rein doctor recently donated the blood to save my life.”

“As would I, Ioren,” Folar’sha said. “As would I.”

Ioren paused her tilon and resumed. “You would be using nanites? You’re using tiny robots. Are they dangerous?”

“Nah,” Cayetano shook his head with absolute certainty. “You would be fine. Once they finish their job, they will shut down and be flushed out of your body normally.”

“When would you like to get started with the procedure?” the doctor asked.

“At your earliest convenience,” her tilon translated.

“Ok,” Folar’sha was thinking. “It will take about a couple of weeks to get the vocal cords fully grown. I will need about a few more days to get it coded...”

“Actually, it will be getting the nanites that are going to be the harder part,” Cayetano explained. “We already have some, but these have to be specifically programmed for this task, and it has to be able to operate with Itrean physiology. I will go ahead and let the Martian Medical Institute know and have them put in order to have it shipped to the Lifen. I would say ... a month, maybe?”

“I understand,” Ioren’s tilon replied.

“In the meantime, I will be looking into other alternatives just in case this fails. We can get you an Electrolarynx vocal box that will connect with your throat combined with a mechanical Dredspin artificial vocal cord. They used these in the late 21^st to early 22^nd century before we eventually switched over to augmented limbs and organs. You would be able to speak better, but it would be more ... artificial in looks and sounding. I don’t know about you, but I imagine you would prefer the first option we gave you. The worst that would happen with the procedure is that your body just rejects the grown vocal cords.”

“The same goes with me,” Folar’sha said. “I promise you that I will keep researching. Shira has her ways of getting information and knowing her, she is working on that right now as we speak. I will be looking into ways that I can grow a hybrid set of vocal cords that would be more attuned to your body and try to get any information that the T’rintar clan may be hiding somehow. You can consider this as the first step for you to be able to physically speak.” The doctor held her hands up in triumph.

“Thank you, both of you,” Ioren typed. There was a smile that appeared on her pointed beak. It almost seemed that she hadn’t heard good news in a long time, and now, it had finally arrived...

“Like ... you put that part together and that part together and ... yeah, man ... you got yourself a shuttle...,” Dean said in his stoned-like state.

Inside the vast storage bay of the Lifen was a small team of seven crew members. Most of their mouths were agape and showing signs of outright skepticism upon hearing what Dean had just stated. Even Mizu’s brow had shown strain in how long it had been held up after the long speech. A lot of them just seemed shocked at what he had been talking about in the last five minutes in how to build their own shuttle. Others were just dumbfounded about how he was in charge of the whole project, to begin with.

The interior of the front lander of the Lifen was enormous. It was well over 130 meters in length. It was big enough that it could house the large railgun-mounted marine vehicles such as the Kujangs. Two large tracks lined the space, allowing cargo to be conveyed in and out. In reality, the storage bay was almost the very heart of the transport. It was the most significant room present and consumed the superstructure itself. There were at least four sets of blast-proof corridors to help seal the ship in case of a hull breach. In the front was the main door that could slide open and release the cargo or vehicles onto a planetary landscape. Behind was a set of doors that would lead to an elevator that led out of the bay. There were also other enclosed doors, hatches, ladders, and elevators on the sides that also led away from the room. Straps, magnetic cranes, and tool sheds lined the various compartments.