Chromium

12.4

First draft

When Dia reached the sickbay, Omen was lying on a bed. He was wearing a respirator, and some weird electrodes were sticking out of his skull. Aside from that, he looked fine, though his face was a bit pale. Sarah, the ship's doctor, was sitting close to him. She was so focused on Omen that she didn't notice her. Only when Dia cleared her throat, she looked up.

"How is he?" Dia asked.

"Stable. Nothing changed." Sarah's voice was flat, lacking strength.

Dia observed her closely. Sarah's brow was creased, her clothes and hair disheveled, sweat beading her forehead. She was nothing like the composed woman Dia had met a few days ago.

"How long have you know him?" Dia asked softly.

Sarah let out a sigh, stretching her arms over her head, "About six months, I guess? I was still living in Dacoma at the time."

Dia bobbed her head, "Dacoma? Is it...a planet?

Sarah faked a smile, "Sorry, sometimes I forget you weren't born here. Yes, it's a small planet, about two or three hundreds thousand miles from here. A real hellhole."

Dia raised an eyebrow, "Worse than Daxum?"

"If you asked me that a week ago, I would have said yes, without a doubt. But now? After everything that has happened?" She shook her head, "I don't know anymore."

For a moment, neither of them spoke. Sarah resumed staring at Omen, her gaze oddly melancholic.

"You know, I used to hate the people who lived here, on Daxum I mean." Sarah said after a while. She spoke softly like she was trying to remember something that happened a long time ago, "I wanted to drag them down into the mud, to suffer like I did. In reality, I was envious. Deep down, I just wanted to be one of them, live like them. I thought that the Nostromus was my chance to leave everything behind, start afresh, but when I finally managed to run away, this happened." She laughed at herself, "What they say is true. Karma is a bitch."

Dia frowned, "You were envious? Why?"

"You're from the Empire. You can't really understand." Sarah's smile faded, her tone hardening, "Around here, having someone like the Umbra a the top of the food chain is considered a blessing."

"You can't be serious." Dia exclaimed, "He is a mass murderer!"

Sarah nonchalantly wrapped a curl around her finger and shrugged, "Who cares? He maintains order, keeps the gangs in line. The alternative is way worse. Trust me, I know what I'm talking about."

"There is no Spice lord in Dacuma?"

"Not really. Sure, there are many wannabe tyrants, but none of them is strong enough to rule. Dacuma is a barren rock, but those assholes managed to make things worse. They fight for territory, drugs, power, and the common people get dragged in the middle."

Dia opened her mouth but then closed it.

"I don't bite." Sarah joked, "If you have something to say, say it."

"No, I..." Dia shook her head, "it's best if I don't. I've been too quick to judge in the past. Much of what I believed to be true turned out to be false. I don't want to make the same mistake again."

"Really? And how's that going?" Sarah asked with a hint of sarcasm, but Dia answered seriously.

"It's hard." She admitted.

"I bet it is." Sarah nodded absentmindedly, staring into the space, "Trying to change yourself is the hardest thing in the world."

"Sounds like you're speaking from experience" Dia pointed out.