Even though no one had made an official plan, the entire crew of the Manessa Kwi gathered at the medical center when the dinner hour, ship’s time, approached. Rini was ready for them, and delighted when Sata handed him a container of raw fish slices.
Mati was still asleep in a recovery room, half her body in a healing tank, and would remain asleep until the following day. Rini already had a pot of vegetables steaming in the little kitchen attached to their sleeping room, and soon located a baking pan as he chatted with his crewmates.
“It was the most intense day of my life!” he declared as he sprinkled salt and spices over the fish. “I fell dead asleep as soon as the surgery was over, and dreamed about spiders with slave whips, and goatherds that turned into mantidae!”
Everyone
laughed.
“Sounds like you got some images from Mati,” Ilika speculated. “Maybe the link hadn’t yet faded.”
Rini suddenly looked guilty, and everyone noticed. “Well . . . um . . . Mati had some trouble, and I had to go way deeper than we planned. It’s . . .”
“Permanent,” Ilika finished with large eyes.
Rini cringed and nodded.
Ilika took a slow breath. “I hope you two are still happy with each other,
NEBADOR Book Six: Star Station 112
because it would be very difficult to ever be close to anyone else.”
Rini smiled and nodded as he poked at the vegetables with a fork. “These are done.”
Sata hopped up and held plates as Rini served.
“So, did everything else go okay?” Ilika asked.
“Yeah, when I woke up, about an hour ago, K’stimla said everything went just as she expected. She’ll be making adjustments, but she knew that. Mati’s sleeping and dreaming.”
“I bet she’s dreaming about surgeons with green mandibles!” Boro speculated with a grin.
“Nope,” Rini declared. “I know exactly what she’s dreaming about. The purple guy said this is normal for a deep link. When only one of us is asleep, they’ll dream what the other one is doing. Mati’s dreaming she’s cooking veggies and fish!”
Ilika smiled and the others snickered.
“. . . except that things get exaggerated and distorted in dreams, so she might be dreaming about steamed pine trees or baked whales!”
Kibi laughed deeply and passed a plate to Ilika.
Boro and Sata talked about their fishing trip, and with a reassuring girl’s arm around his back, Boro admitted he had to nurse a wounded ego after catching the smaller fish. That gave Kibi the courage to mention the lost marine mammal she had sensed, but failed to help.
Ilika’s eyes sparkled with pride as he listened to his crew members. He was just about to share his day when five bracelets chimed at once.
They all looked and saw the same message.
“Rini, you are on-duty,” Ilika declared, “but let me know if any more surgeries are scheduled.”
The slender lad nodded and started grabbing empty plates as soon as each person inhaled the last few bites.
“Kibi is in command, and is cross-training with Rini during non-critical times. Also, Sata with Boro. I’m your pilot.”
They all drained their cups and headed for the door.
Rini, his hair brushed back and his face glowing with power and masculine
NEBADOR Book Six: Star Station 113
charm, picked up an entire pallet of heavy boxes, and without effort, strode into the ship.
A chicken came next, clucking and tapping at a mission bracelet on her left wing as she guided the next pallet.
Boro flexed his huge arm muscles, showing them off to Sata, who swiveled her sexy hips in response. When he tried to lift a pallet, he grunted and strained, but it wouldn’t move. He kept trying until Rini strode back out, grabbed it with one hand, grinned, and re-entered the ship.
Finally, taller than all the rest, Ilika came behind cracking a whip as beams of light flashed from his green eyes. “Work! Faster! Don’t forget that the square root of the semi-major axis is equal to the velocity of the anti-mass drive at inner navigation marker C near the liquid-gaseous boundary on Sonmatia Seven!”
All four crew members saluted and scurried to their stations.
“You’re in command, Kibi!” Ilika boomed. “I want to play games on my knowledge pad.”
The chicken clucked loudly, hopped into the command chair, and laid an egg.
Mati startled awake.
An avian healer wandered over from another part of the quiet, dimly-lit recovery room. “Bok. Hello, Mati.”
“Did K’stimla . . . did I . . .”
“The surgery was completely successful, bok,” the bird explained as she studied the blood chemistry display, “although there will probably be minor adjustments during the next few weeks. Our bodies sometimes do not heal the way we want them to, bok. How do you feel?”
“Weird
dreams.”
“Would you like a knowledge pad, bok, so you can record them?”
Mati thought for a moment. “No, not those dreams.”
The avian chuckled as she tapped at the blood console. “A very deep link with your partner was necessary to overcome some stressful memories, bok.
You and he will have some work getting used to that link. We will help, of course. Hungry, bok? Thirsty?”
NEBADOR Book Six: Star Station 114
“Um . . . no. Sleepy.”
“Good. I’m increasing your sleep medication slightly.”
“Okay. Good ni . . .”
Several hours later, Rini soundlessly stepped into the recovery room. The avian met him and guided him into an office where they could talk.
“She woke up for a few minutes, bok, and reported strange dreams, probably because of the link.”
“That’s funny, it was a very uneventful mission — two pallets to a mining camp on an asteroid. The steward was in command, and we didn’t have any problems at all.”
“You know how dreams can be, bok.”
Deep Learning Notes
You can have fun, if you’d like, analyzing Mati’s dream. What does it reveal about her deep-seated (probably completely unconscious) feelings toward Ilika, Kibi, Boro, and Sata?