Juggernauts

CHAPTER 9: Man or Machine?

After what felt like days of surgery and attaching electrodes and new nerves to the crippled body of their leader, Ella was finally able to fasten the last piece to her friend's flesh. Everything from his shoulders to the end of his arm extremities were replaced by metal servos and sensors. Almost skin colored to seem more human. Most of his legs were gone as well and in-salvageable, so they had to be replaced as well. All that was left of their leader was most of the front of his torso and his head and neck.

His heart and brain was now part of the machine keeping him alive, also removing the need for his armor to be locked for storage since no one would be able to take most of it from him. Though from a distance he seemed to look normal, upon closer inspection it could be seen that there was just as much metal as skin left on his body.

Weeks passed as the team was confined to their base until Tom either woke up or died. eventually the boredom got to some of the team.

Ella sat slumped in a chair next to the hospital bed that Tom's still unconscious body. Zoning in and out of sleep, she almost didn't notice when Alex walked in.

He gently nudged her shoulder. "Ella, you up still?" 

Drowsily she replied. "Barely. What time is it?"

"Almost 4 A.M. How long has he been unconscious now?" 

"Since the incident, so... about 26 days."

"Man I would kill to sleep that long. Speaking of which, when was the last time you got some shut eye?"

"About 3 days ago. But I don't want to be away when he wakes up."

"Ella, go get some coffee. I'll sit with him for a bit."

"But Alex..."

"That's an order Ella." Alex jokingly said.

She nodded and then stood up as she sleepily marched her way to the mess hall. Alex sat by Tom's bed and placed his hand on Tom's arm. 

"Tommy, I hope you can hear me. You gotta wake up soon man. Everyone is worried about you. Command also wont let anyone off site until they know you're gonna make it. You're a tough bastard dude. With all do respect." Alex chuckled to himself.

"Ella needs you, I need you, the team needs you. Don't you go on us, people out there are counting on you. Still got a lot of bodies to bury sir."

Ella came back with two cups of steaming coffee in her hands as Alex got up to meet her at the door.

"Not...gonna bury...this one yet, Al." Tom almost silently groaned.

Alex and Ella both spun their heads to face him as they saw his eyelids slowly peel apart as his eyes slowly focused.

"What the hell happened to me Ella?" Tom dryly said as he sat up in his bed and placed his hand on his forehead. 

A look of confusion quickly spread over his face as he looked at his hand and arm. The look quickly spread to fear as he looked up to his friends and then back to his body. 

"Tom, stay calm. Alex, get some water." Ella said as she set the coffee down and rushed to Tom's side.

Alex left the room in a hurry as Tom's eyes darted around the room and he threw the blanket over his body to the floor, exposing the rest of his metallic body. 

"Tom, Tom. I need you to stay calm." Ella said as she grabbed his hand and tried to press him back into his bed.

"Calm? Calm? You want me to stay calm? What the fuck happened to me?" Tom asked almost hysterically. 

Alex rushed back into the room with a bottle of water and handed it to Ella. She unscrewed the cap and began gently pouring water into Tom's mouth.

Tom greedily drank the water and laid back into his bed as he began to slow his breathing. 

"You're ok Tom. You're ok now."

Tom pushed the bottle away from his mouth and wiped the water from his face. "What happened to me Ella?"

Alex looked to Ella and said to Tom. "You died man."