The lights were dimmed so late at night, but there was still some stew left on the warmers. Along the far wall of the cafeteria there were worn tables and tucked up under them were even older, more worn plastic chairs. At one time, they could have passed for blue. But by the year 4099, the color was a faded and dirty, dingy replica of that hue. At one of the tables sat a lone occupant. The woman had her head throw back and she stared up at the ceiling as if she were reading a message in the off white tiles. Her ankles were crossed and she remained almost motionless. Behind her, the stew continued to make noises as it reheated over and over again on the stove.
The doors to the cafeteria slowly opened and Gray Byron poked his head in. He had been wandering the hospital for some time and his face bore a look of near relief at finally finding a room he recognized. As he stepped into the cafeteria, the woman at the table immediately sat up. Her boots make a sickening bumping noise on the tile floor as she rose from her motionless state. She looked him over in one quick glance as he did the same appraisal on her. Convinced neither was a threat, she sat back down and sipped from her stained, overused coffee mug. Gray lifted an eyebrow at the coffee mug, his expression now one of hope.
"Hey!" His voice boomed over the empty cafeteria. The woman did not spare him a glance.
"Yes," Her voice was low, almost a mutter. She finally looked his way as he broke into a bit of laughter.
"Do they purposefully make it hard to find the coffee?" The woman snorted in disgust, her hand waving to a tall cylinder on the counter.
"Do you think it grows on trees? Try that pot. Might hold coffee, might not." Her sarcasm was not lost on Gray, but he took hope in the canister and moved quickly to it.
"It sure would be it did." Gray concentrated on opening the canister as he fought an overwhelming urge for a cigar.
"Yeah, if any trees grew. Just can't grow the trees hydroponically." Ashley trailed off as she looked down into her mug. The coffee was the best they could do under the circumstances.
"Maybe it would smell better." The man looked at her, his face now contorted in a grimace.
Ash shrugged. "Yeah, well. That is the least of our worries, right?"
Gray looked at her, the smile on his lips not quite reflected in his eyes. "I'm a moment to moment kind of guy. Right now, I'm awfully worried about the coffee." Ash did not respond to the smile and took a deep sip.
"Don't worry. So is the rest of the world, " she said, her face breaking into a jagged grin. She then broke out into a horrid cough, her face turning scarlet as she coughed violently. Gray moved to her, cradling the cup. From outside, the sound of a rather large engine could be heard cutting off, then large footsteps approaching the cafeteria.
"Hey, are you sick?" Gray had a twinge of genuine concern in her voice. Ash considered the question as the footsteps outside the swinging doors grew closer.
"Yeah."
He glanced at her ragged voice, then shrugged. "Bet your glad you're in a hospital."
Ash looked at him. "Maybe. Be happier if I were in a bed."
"Why aren't you?" Gray took a slow sip of the liquid he had assumed was coffee.
"Gotta work. What is your story?"
At her question, Gray broke out into a small grin. "I don't have a story worth telling."
"Hell, that ain't true." Ash shook her head. She had worked in the hospital long enough to know everyone who came through the doors had a story to tell.
Gray pulled out one of the chairs at her table and sat down. "You think so, huh?"
His question was direct, but Ash had turned her head. The slight movement of the cafeteria doors had caught her gaze. A man had walked through them, his gaze at once inquisitive and alert. Ash looked back at Gray momentarily. "Yeah, I think so. But don't put too much money on what I think. Ah. The Freeman Commander," she said, her gaze having gone back to the new man in the cafeteria. Her nursing skill had immediately appraised him for any sign of injury.
The man, known as Garth Lowinn, finally caught Ash's eyes and smiled a bit at her. "What devilish dinner is on the burner tonight? I pray it tastes half as good as it smells."
Ash tilted her head to one side. "Stew. Guaranteed radiation free," she said, her voice filled with apparent sarcasm. Garth laughed a bit.
"No radiation? But that adds so much spice."
Ash shrugged at this while she considered both men in the room with her. "Got anything to trade tonight, either of you?" Gray began to nod as Garth ladled some of the stew into a bowl.
"Anything in particular you're looking for?" Garth's question was simple as he turned to look at Ash, his head inclined a bit as he took in Gray.
"I need distributor caps," Ash said, then turned her face to cough violently into her sleeve. When she was done, she looked at Gray. "What about you? What have you got?"
"My services." Gray's face was smug.
"Your services? What kind of services?" Garth sat down at the table the two of them were already occupying.
"Services? Some of my men know where you can get good services." The Freeman Commander's voice was at the same time condescending and disbelieving. Ash glared at Garth, then looked back at Gray.
"For you, nothing you would ever need but something you would more likely enjoy," he said, his meaning not being lost on Ash. She continued to glare as Gray's face took a serious turn.
"My offer of services was really for the Freeman Commander."
Garth laughed at this as he took another bite of stew. "I said my men would know. I do not partake of that myself. What is it you proclaim to be able to offer me?"
Ash took another drink of her coffee, then looked up as the cafeteria doors swung open once again. A man came in slowly, one eye taking in the room. As Gray and Garth continued their banter, Ash rose to see about this newcomer.
Zac had an affliction of having only one eye. It did not impair him, but often caused other people to give him little more then one glance. He reminded himself of this sort of treatment as he came into the hospital. He headed straight for the nurse's desk, slinging a large bag on top of it. He looked over his shoulder and saw the spiky haired nurse approach him. He watched her approach as he stuck a cigarette in his mouth.
"Let's see it." Ash's voice was ravaged by her bad case of the flu.
Zac just smiled. "Hey Lady Doc." He leaned open and untied the sack, fluffing it open. "It works too." He attempted a bit of a smile as Ash looked it over, checking the connections.
She finally plugged into the jack by the wall. "I hear you gave us some trouble."
"You must have heard wrong," Zac said, watching her work. His stance was a bit defensive. "You OK, Doc?"
"One of the Freemen boys brought in the flu." Her voice was cold and a bit clipped as she continued to examine the burn-plate. She then looked up at him. "You were caught on tape."
"Yeah, yeah. You want the plate or not?"
"A deals a deal." Ash was quiet as she unplugged it and stood, leaving it where it was.
"Try not to shoot up the place while I am gone." She walked out of the cafeteria towards the Ambulance Bays. Zac ran a hand over his hair, then sat down. Across from him, the conversation between Garth and Gray continued to spiral at a frantic pace.
Gray had shook his head at the Freeman Commanders' request of what he could do. "Well, now. It would be stupid to lay down the offerings without a potential price on the table, wouldn't it?"
"Price? There isn't much you could offer me that I would pay for, kid." Garth shook his head and went back to shoveling the stew in his mouth.
"You think so? What if I told you I could provide you with valuable information about the Churchmen? Information that might be useful." The words were not lost on Garth. Beyond the two men, the doors to the cafeteria opened a bit as a small creature crept in. Garth watched it a moment, then looked back at Gray.
"I would tell you that before I gave you anything, I want to hear what you got. Then, after you told me, I would probably drag your ass back to base so Mikkaill could hear your BS."
"Mind if I just skip you and asked to be escorted to 'Mikkaill'?"
Garth shook his head. "Sorry. It doesn't work that way."
Gray stood at this and shrugged. "Well, it was worth a shot. Just out of curiosity, have you ever heard of H'livaania?"
"Can't say that I have. Why do you ask?"
Gray chose his words very carefully as he leaned forward a bit. "She was my superior when I was a Churchmen."
Garth stood up immediately and withdrew his six shooter. He aimed it at Gray before the other man could react. "You say that again. I want to make sure I heard you right." Behind them, the little creature had become foraging for food and blinked at the sudden impending violence.
Gray did not appear to be very concerned. "Don't worry, sir. I'm as about put out by them as you are."
The gun remained pointed at him as the Freeman Commander looked him over. "You aren't wearing a standard uniform. I don't know whether to kill you or holster my gun."
"I ditched my uniform and insignias the moment I walked into the hospital. Not too smart to claim my previous employment with you boys walking around, don't you think?"
"Previous you say? How do I believe that?" Garth's voice began to quaver a bit. His mind was over clouded by images. Images of what the Churchmen had done. Images he could never escape from.
"Room 330. That is how you know," Gray said, a muscle in his cheek twitching to betray how hard he was concentrating.
Garth's eyes had changed. He was no longer seeing Gray, but his beloved Anna. The Churchmen had killed her and he couldn't let go of that vision. "You killed my Anna!"
Garth's scream was enough to cause all those in the room to stop and look up. Zac, working quietly at a computer terminal, glanced up at Garth's shout and made sure his finger was still solid on the butt of his 9MM-hand gun. To the left of him, Strife, one of Garth's own Special Ops Freemen, had walked in the doors. He stopped cold at the sight of the gun being waved. Behind him, Ash and a Syrynykk who'd heard the shout came back in. Ash had packages and a shower card in her teeth but she halted as did the Lizard behind her at the tableau before them. All were still but for Strife who walked carefully up to Garth, well within his view.
Gray remained in his seat, a crooked smile on his lips. "There are so many of us bastards. How can you be sure?"
Garth remained still, his gun still on Gray. Strife tapped him on the shoulder. He jumped a bit even though Strife had approached so as not to startle him. Garth swung the gun around to jam the muzzle in the face of his own soldier.
Ash softly grumbled about how she did not want to be patching folks up tonight. She spit out the card in her teeth then dumped the bag she held near Zac. It was filled with Phlupp Jerky.
Zac glanced down at the shower card, then smiled. "Damn, lady."
"A deals a deal." She smirked, then looked up at the crazed Garth. Zac nodded, putting the jerky in his ruck.
Strife's face paled a bit. "Hey. Please put that thing away."
"I'll kill you! Not one of you friggin' Church boys are leaving here alive!" Garth's scream echoed over the cafeteria.
"Oh crud. We have a flashbacker." Ash's voice was tinged with despair. She had seen Garth's kind before. The war was so devastating, many soldiers could never forget the pain they had seen.
Garth's gun was still pointed at his own soldier, the muzzle aimed for the area between the man's eyes.
Strife frowned and then slapped his own Commander. "Snap out of it, will you? It is ME! Strife!"
Behind them, Zac approached. He was determined to end this little display. He had his own gun drawn as he stepped in Garth's line of vision. "Hey, friend. You want to come back to the surface?" His voice was calm as he rolled the cigarette in his mouth. "What do you say we play nice and put these things away?"
Garth began to scream as the voices in his head began to pound. His gun lowered and pointed at the floor.
Zac watch him and nodded to himself. "Stay cool, Freeman."
"Put the gun down, Lowinn," Strife chimed in, his own fear at losing his life having fled.
Zac stepped back a bit, allowing one of Garth's own to help calm him.
Next to Ash, the Syrynykk known as Sitharis just watched. He was tall and serpentine in vision. He shook his head at the violence around him. His voice was punctuated by long hisses, almost reminiscent of a snake. He had yellow eyes with vertically narrowing irises, like those of a snake, and a mouth full of razor sharp teeth. "Sssuch disssplaysss ..." He observed, each word drawn out over his serpentine tongue.
"I'm with you." Ash nodding at the scaled patron. The Syrynykk inclined his head a bit, perhaps pleased that his words were agreed to and accepted. Ash leaned over and pressed a button on the intercom. The over head speakers hummed to life as the Supercomputer, Elliott 7, came on.
"Possible Code Red. Get the Triage ready." Her voice stayed in tune with the low humming of the computer.
Gray did not recognize Strife, but he did sense an opportunity, provided by Strife's distraction, to overpower the flipped out Freemen Commander. He jumped up and grabbed the barrel of the drooping gun. Zac pulled out his N21 as Strife instantly lunged for Gray. Garth let out a scream, and by the tone of it the others knew that it was unrelated to their reality or Garth's hallucination.
"Slow down, friend. Let the man calm himself." Zac's voice remained smooth and rational. He backed down a bit, allowing Strife the option and opportunity to guard his Commander. Strife looked at Garth and slowly let the man in his grip go free. "Thank you. I didn't realize your intentions." Strife leveled his gaze at him.
Gray took the gun from the Commander and glared at Strife. He shook his head, then pushed Garth toward the nearest cafe' table. "There is enough violence in here already."