In fact, the Caretaker had nearly missed it on her first sweep, which said something. Not that Aiden was in the mood to praise Lana for her cleverness or skill, all things considered.
In any case, it didn't take long before the bug was found and thoroughly destroyed, then its remains launched into the void to join the other debris from the battle. In the tense minutes it took for Ali and Barix to get back inside, Aiden kept a sharp eye on the sensors for any sign of trouble.
Given how their luck was going, it almost came as a surprise when his two EV crew members reported they were safely in, and Aiden guided the Last Stand through the rift the gunner opened for him.
The display shifted to an endless expanse of interstellar space, and Aiden slumped back in his seat with a silent sigh of relief. After a few seconds he grudgingly toggled his comms. “Ali, priorities?”
The Caretaker responded without hesitation. “Verify all systems are stable for another jump, see to the injured crew, more thoroughly secure and examine the prisoner, and begin repairs.”
Aiden grimaced. The prisoner. A callous way to refer to their friend, whatever had just happened. The Caretaker was colder than the companion had been. “All right, let's get to work.”
* * * * *
It was quite possible this was the closest the Last Stand had ever come to living up to its name.
Aiden's poor ship was a mess. Aside from the obvious catastrophes, like the shields being slagged, the railgun a mangled lump of scrap, his cargo bay a crumpled tangle of scorched metal, two crew cabins and the lounge packed with sealant foam and unusable, not to mention the expensive full immersion gear now so much junk, there were hull breaches and radiation warnings everywhere.
Not to mention he was down to four active crew members; Ali had gotten Belix back on her feet, with nothing worse to show for her run-in with a Dormant than a splitting headache, but her medical advice had been for the slight woman to rest for a few hours while the stabilizing drugs she administered did their work.
Likewise, the gunner's arm had been set and he was still stubbornly on his feet, but he was relegated to performing his duties one-handed. Which, to be fair, probably still made him more useful than anyone besides Ali, who was also down a hand but was already working on a replacement.
Although it wasn't as if an extra pair of hands, more available crew that is, would've helped much; the Last Stand could technically still fly and fight, and the fuel and provisions were untouched, but the maneuvers of space combat would very likely tear her apart at the seams.
Aiden was going to have to touch down somewhere to make emergency repairs. Or, more ideally, find a space station and let qualified professionals patch the old girl back together. Possibly both.
At the moment, though, Barix had taken them through another few jumps, enough so that being followed was theoretically impossible. They'd also gone over the rest of the ship with a fine tooth comb to make sure there were no more bugs aboard, and on top of all that the slight man had a jump queued up, and was currently enjoying one of his brief stints manning the pilot's chair.
There were a thousand things Aiden had to do, all clamoring for most important. But now that things were at least somewhat stabilized there was one thing he had to do. Even if he wasn't sure he wanted to.
So he made his way to the medical bay, which was serving as an impromptu brig for Lana since literally no other room was available.
Unsurprisingly, the gunner was there standing vigil, even though there were countless things he should be doing as well. Including rest, considering the shattered arm that Ali had set and begun accelerated regrowth for; it was now immobilized in a brace and sling, giving the young man a battered look to go with his haunted, empty expression.
Aiden couldn't really hold the gunner's desire to watch over Lana against him. What did come as a surprise was that the young man was standing out in the corridor, looking into the bay through a small window that was usually shuttered for privacy.
He would've expected the emotionally devastated weapons officer to be sitting at his lover's side. Not waiting for her to wake up, of course, since Ali was keeping her in a medically induced coma for security reasons, but at least keeping her company.
Then again, maybe he could understand the young man wanting to distance himself from his pain; when in the Construct's short life had he ever experienced anything like this? Aiden, technically over thirty years his senior, was having a difficult enough time of his own processing this betrayal, and he was no stranger to the feeling.
For a young man who'd spent his life secluded aboard a relatively small ship, almost never leaving it, and being surrounded by people he'd known all his life, this could very well feel like the end of the universe. Overcome by a sudden surge of pity, Aiden stepped up beside the boy and rested a comforting hand on his shoulder.
Only when the gunner visibly stiffened did he realize this was the first real contact they'd ever had, aside from accidental brushes while working near each other. It seemed almost unforgivable, that the gunner was for all intents and purposes his son, and Aiden had refused to ever act like it.
Just one of his many failings.
“Excuse me,” the young man said curtly, not quite shrugging off his hand as he stepped away. “Redlining the engines during the battle threw the stabilizers
