“Everything went well,” Jerin explained. “More successfully than I’d anticipated, actually. I was able to regenerate ninety percent of the brain tissue that had been removed.”
“Ninety percent of the man I used to be. Not too bad.” Lim’s smile was crooked.
“The anesthetic is lingering a little,” Brak reported. “I’m going to wait it out. Given the tissue regeneration, I don’t want to give him a stimulant.”
“Agreed.” Jerin returned her attention to Lim. “How are you feeling?”
His eyes became more focused. “Fine, I guess. Maybe a little nauseated?”
“We’ll give you something for that.” Jerin nodded to Brak. “Otherwise? Any headache?”
“Not exactly. The light’s bothering me a little.”
“That’s normal, and will pass in a day or two. I recommend you spend the time resting in your quarters. You’ll be tired. You might have some balance issues in the short term but your brain will figure itself out remarkably quickly.” Jerin smiled at him encouragingly.
“So it went well?” He seemed unaware that he was repeating what had already been said.
“Yes. Very well, Lim. Why don’t you rest while we tidy up?”
“Okay.” He closed his eyes and went silent.
Fallon moved closer to Jerin. “Why is he so out of it?”
“Some people are slower to come around after brain surgery. Some take longer to recover from anesthetic. Perfectly normal. Don’t worry.”
Jerin joined Brak at the techbed controls and they murmured to each other in what sounded to Fallon like satisfied tones. She had nothing to do here but sit and watch Lim doze.
A half hour later, he was still dozing.
“He may sleep for another hour or so,” Brak said to her. “If you want to go, we can contact you when he’s awake.”
“No. He asked me to be here. I don’t want him to wake up and think I’ve abandoned him. I’ll wait.”
Fifty minutes later, he roused. He still looked tired, but he’d lost his air of confusion. Jerin and Brak explained the situation to him again as he became more and more alert.
“Great,” he said. “Thanks.”
“You can stay here as long as you like,” Jerin told him.
“No. I’m good. I think I’d like to go back to my quarters and rest. Maybe watch a holo-vid.”
“Perfect,” Brak said. “We want you to take it very easy for the next few days. You won’t be able to tell, but your brain is going to be very busy. Let it do its thing.”
“Sure,” he agreed.
“I’ll help you to your quarters,” Fallon said, moving to assist him when he sat up.
“That’s nice of you,” he said. “Thank you.”
“It’s nothing.” She moved close as he stood, but he stayed steady under his own power. He just seemed terribly tired.
“When should I come back for my turn?” she asked Jerin and Brak before leaving.
“Two hours will give us time to get some lunch and rest a little.” Jerin smiled at her.
“Two hours, then.”
She saw Lim to his quarters, kept him company for a little while, then left him under Hawk’s supervision.
“You’ll let me know as soon as you leave the infirmary?” Hawk asked.
“I’ll come straight back here. You’ll be the first to know, after Jerin and Brak.”
“And you,” he added.
“Right. And if we’re lucky, Krazinski will know very soon too.”
“Are you ready?” Brak peered down at Fallon.
“I couldn’t be more ready.”
“Okay. I’ve programmed the techbed with a repeating audio frequency, as well as a physical pulse, just to be sure. Have you prepared the message you intend to send?”
“Yes.” Fallon would keep the message short. She only needed to let Krazinski know that she was listening.
“Lie back and relax. I’m going to lower the lights so that you can focus more completely on the audio and sensory input. Tell me when you’re ready to start.”
Fallon glanced at Jerin, who smiled encouragingly, before closing her eyes. “Now.”
She heard an electronic buzzing and felt a corresponding vibration beneath her. She focused on it as it repeated. She imagined herself aligning with the pattern, becoming part of it.
She felt something odd, and opened her eyes. It was like someone taking her outstretched hand in theirs. But it was in her mind. She must have made the connection. There was nothing left to do but send her message.
“I’m here,” she thought.
“That’s it.” Fallon sat up. “It’s sent.” She focused on letting go of the connection, and after a moment the feeling went away.
Jerin nodded, and Brak said, “I’ll discontinue the stimulus.”
“Do you feel okay?” Jerin asked.
“Fine. It’s interesting, actually. Like there’s a tunnel inside my head.”
“Can you open and close it at will?” Jerin asked.
“Yes.” Fallon imagined the sound of the frequency and felt the sensation of connection again, then let go of it. “I just turned it on and off again. Kind of neat. Like flexing a muscle.”
“I suggest you turn it off to sleep,” Brak advised.
“Yeah. Good plan. Otherwise, I plan to keep it open as much as possible, so I’ll know as soon as Krazinski replies.” She looked to Brak. “Unless there’s some reason I shouldn’t?”
Brak gave a slight shake of the head. “Not that I’m aware of. You can receive messages, but the device can only be activated by your own brain. How long do you think it will take to get a reply?”
“Depends on how far away they are. My message will have to travel to them, then their response will have to cover the same distance. Since there won’t be any relays along the way to boost the signal, I’d guess a couple days or more, if they’re relatively nearby.”
“That’s a long time to wait,” Jerin said.
“It’s a far cry from the datastream,” Fallon agreed. “This is a pretty old-school means of communication.”
“When are you going to tell your team about this?” Jerin asked.
“Hawk already knows. But I’ll tell the rest of them tonight. I want them to be prepared to act as soon as I get a response.”
Fallon sat next to Hawk in her quarters when she told the rest of their team,
