Franklin grunted one of his grunts, watching Daziel pry the packet of hemosynth from the IV drip and stick a dainty finger into its depths.
"So you been a yarn-swatter this whole time, eh, Burton?" Franklin asked, arms akimbo.
Daziel used the bag to press the dangling ear up against the side of his bruised head while he ran the hemosynth-soaked finger along the length of the wound. For the time being, he was ignoring Franklin's prodding on the matter. Next, the classy executive splashed some of the life-sludge over his face, before finally tipping the bag over his mouth and drinking the rest of it in one gulp. In this way, the urbane Neko-on-the-go could get their hemosynth in them quickly and go about their business. A trick learned in the field.
Franklin just grunted again and turned to tip his hat to Alice. "Well, Doc, I'm gonna go get them fellers like y' asked. Try to patch Strellan up enough so's he kin work again, fella owes me sixty deyay."
On his way out, Franklin gave Daziel another snarling look. Again, the executive had no reaction. After Franklin left, Daziel finally spoke up to say, "An X-Ray shall not be necessary. I'm..." Daziel gave her a blood-lined smile. "I'm a tad bit NH-29, you see. The result of a well-intentioned ships' doctor trying to bring a dying Nepleslian some new life, as it were. It's a bit of a sad story, so I shan't regale you. Suffice it to say, the hemosynth is satisfactory."
With a swing of his legs, Daziel ejected himself from the bed and walked slowly over to look down at Niel. Alice's hasty and expertly applied treatment had done well for the aging engineer. As the bleeding stopped, his heart rate lowered to a more acceptable level and soon the shipwright was awake enough to make soft moaning noises, though he seemed barely conscious. Daziel frowned to behold him.
"Doctor Mason, I do hope you'll be able to bring him around for dinner. We'll have an urgent meeting and there shall be much to discuss."
-----
Sapphire soon felt a heavy, calloused hand spread across her shoulder. Looking over her and down to the sizable KS card in her hand was Franklin, who'd approached silently with his mind no-doubt on something bigoted. He squinted down at the big KS card and asked, "Whatcha got there, princess?"
Akemi's prisoner had long since satisfied himself to simply listen quietly to the exchange between the singer and the ranch girl. Now that a third person was around, he just let his head slump in hopes that he could get a tiny nap before his interrogation began. Even though he planned to be perfectly cooperative, he'd been captured enough times to know that wasn't how things always went.
Nearby, Yori's diagnostic results were coming in nicely. The APS had an integrated 'nervous system' that ran the entire length of its spire, with sensors that monitored the on and off of every independant component. Even if one of the many tiny pumps or compressors had been damaged, the system would still run at reduced efficiency. In fact, even if the other fifteen APS prototypes were never deployed, this first one was powerful enough that it would purify the atmosphere on its own if left on the planet for a number of years. The results of such a diagnostic revealed this time that all was well. Every component was functioning flawlessly. Visually, the thing was scuffed and dented. Tiny, blackened dimples had formed in the smooth metal where bullets had struck in not too long ago, but luckily none had penetrated. Beneath the outer shell, the intake pumps and ozone tanks whirred away, softly humming back to Yori. The first ozone dump was still several hours away.
"So you been a yarn-swatter this whole time, eh, Burton?" Franklin asked, arms akimbo.
Daziel used the bag to press the dangling ear up against the side of his bruised head while he ran the hemosynth-soaked finger along the length of the wound. For the time being, he was ignoring Franklin's prodding on the matter. Next, the classy executive splashed some of the life-sludge over his face, before finally tipping the bag over his mouth and drinking the rest of it in one gulp. In this way, the urbane Neko-on-the-go could get their hemosynth in them quickly and go about their business. A trick learned in the field.
Franklin just grunted again and turned to tip his hat to Alice. "Well, Doc, I'm gonna go get them fellers like y' asked. Try to patch Strellan up enough so's he kin work again, fella owes me sixty deyay."
On his way out, Franklin gave Daziel another snarling look. Again, the executive had no reaction. After Franklin left, Daziel finally spoke up to say, "An X-Ray shall not be necessary. I'm..." Daziel gave her a blood-lined smile. "I'm a tad bit NH-29, you see. The result of a well-intentioned ships' doctor trying to bring a dying Nepleslian some new life, as it were. It's a bit of a sad story, so I shan't regale you. Suffice it to say, the hemosynth is satisfactory."
With a swing of his legs, Daziel ejected himself from the bed and walked slowly over to look down at Niel. Alice's hasty and expertly applied treatment had done well for the aging engineer. As the bleeding stopped, his heart rate lowered to a more acceptable level and soon the shipwright was awake enough to make soft moaning noises, though he seemed barely conscious. Daziel frowned to behold him.
"Doctor Mason, I do hope you'll be able to bring him around for dinner. We'll have an urgent meeting and there shall be much to discuss."
-----
Sapphire soon felt a heavy, calloused hand spread across her shoulder. Looking over her and down to the sizable KS card in her hand was Franklin, who'd approached silently with his mind no-doubt on something bigoted. He squinted down at the big KS card and asked, "Whatcha got there, princess?"
Akemi's prisoner had long since satisfied himself to simply listen quietly to the exchange between the singer and the ranch girl. Now that a third person was around, he just let his head slump in hopes that he could get a tiny nap before his interrogation began. Even though he planned to be perfectly cooperative, he'd been captured enough times to know that wasn't how things always went.
Nearby, Yori's diagnostic results were coming in nicely. The APS had an integrated 'nervous system' that ran the entire length of its spire, with sensors that monitored the on and off of every independant component. Even if one of the many tiny pumps or compressors had been damaged, the system would still run at reduced efficiency. In fact, even if the other fifteen APS prototypes were never deployed, this first one was powerful enough that it would purify the atmosphere on its own if left on the planet for a number of years. The results of such a diagnostic revealed this time that all was well. Every component was functioning flawlessly. Visually, the thing was scuffed and dented. Tiny, blackened dimples had formed in the smooth metal where bullets had struck in not too long ago, but luckily none had penetrated. Beneath the outer shell, the intake pumps and ozone tanks whirred away, softly humming back to Yori. The first ozone dump was still several hours away.
