Journey

Indiana

Lorelei and Kourtni got sent to fight. They are the fighting type. I am expecting to get sent to the room where the Test Subjects are being kept. It's probably a lab or something. I go up to the place where the Highest Order is.

From the name it infers that they Highest Order is a group of people but it is one person. Very curious. He looks me over for a long time. A very long time. I was about to ask him if he needed something when he finally spoke.

"Not much of a fighter," He tells me.

"However you do have a very enhanced brain," He tells me.

That takes me by surprise. What?

"Take him to the hospitals!" He orders.

Before I can properly ask what is happening I am dragged by two Brights like a ragdoll. We go down several hallways and stop in a room filled with technology. They place giant glasses on my head and we continue.

They didn't really do much for my vision but now I can read the words on the doors. We pass doors labeled "Mechanics", "Testing", "Design" and finally "Hospitals".

We enter the hospitals door. Inside it is whiter than the whitest white you can think of. Nothing is out of place. Several Brights are sitting in uniforms eating something.

"This is your supervisor Tori," A Bright tells me.

They turn and leave. I look at Tori. She is lean and is as tall as I am.

"Hi I'm Tori. What's your name?" She asks.

"My name is Indiana," I tell her.

Tori leads me into a room that isn't so blinding. I sit on the couch and find that it is surprisingly comfortable.

"I'm sure you have many questions and we will get to those eventually but I want to tell you why you are here." She tells me.

I nod

"You are here because the Highest Order saw something in you that he thought could help our colony." Tori tells me.

"Why do you think I want to help you?" I ask Tori.

"Because if you don't you die," She says in such a nonchalant tone that I find myself revolted.

"What am I supposed to do here?" I ask.

"Well for now you are going to be working in the hospital. You do have medical experience right?" Tori asks.

"Yes." I tell her.

I do actually have medical experience. I apprenticed with Sage for most of my Teen years. Sage decided I should work out schematics for the ship instead of working in the medical field. Not because I was bad at medical practices but he thought they could make better use of m mathematic skills as a shipper. However I didn't finish training in time for the switch of the new commander and yeah.

"Good. Here is a pair of scrubs. You are in Labor and Delivery," She tells me.

She leads me to the locker rooms and I change into my pair of scrubs. She leads me to my first patient.

"How dilated is she?" I ask.

Everyone in the room stares at me. The patient is glowering.

"How about we just watch this one," She tells me.

We sit in the chairs to the left of the hospital bed.

The patient was in obvious pain and she had tears streaking her face.

"What are you going to name your child?" I ask her.

She stares at me.

"The mother doesn't name the child," Tori laughs.

"Then who names the child?" I ask.

"The Highest Order. Who else?" She laughs.

"But it's her child."

"Oh no. We don't have children. We just carry them for the government," Tori tells me.

"Oh stars. I have to come up with a name for my child soon," I exclaim.

Alivia is due in about a month.

"Did your government assign you to have a child with your wife?" Tori asks me.

I laugh.

"No. We didn't mean to have a child," I explain.

"What do you mean? Did you not have control over whether or not you procreated?" Tori asks me.

"No we had control we just didn't expect it," I tried to explain.

"So your government didn't tell you to have a child," Tori tried.

"No we are allowed to decide if we want children or not," I tell her.

"Wait wait wait. If you didn't procreate out of necessity than why?" She asks.

I get red. I don't really want to explain lust to my supervisor.

"Lust. Pleasure," I tell her.

"You get pleasure from this?" She asks.

"Humans are strange people," I tell her.

"Agreed."

We sit for a while not talking because what do you talk about while sitting in a room with a lady in labor?

"We aren't needed here. We can go back to your room and discuss some more," Tori tells me.

I can't agree more. That was getting weird.

We get back to my room and I sit on my bed and she sits in a chair.

"Tell me more about life where you are from," She tells me.

"Oh stars. Where do I even start?" I laugh.

"Anywhere," She tells me.

"Life there was strange for sure. I had to move around a lot. I moved from the ship I had lived my whole life on to the land we colonized. Then we went to the other colony because reasons.

All was right in my life. I had my girlfriend who was about to give birth and now I am here," I tell her.

"I don't agree with the ways of the Highest Order," Tori tells me.

"Do you know why they attacked us?" I asked her.

"Yes. They were looking for Alexandra, the Highest Order's sister. She woke up early from our hibernation and left to go to Oasis so her brother attacked your people to extract her. There was whispers saying she had a child and that's why they kidnaped you guys but I don't believe them because Alexandra has a heart of ice," Tori tells me.

"Why are you telling me this?" I ask.

"Because I don't agree with this war and I feel like we can help each other." She tells me.