It was a hell of a battle, by all rights this marine SHOULD be dead. But we saved him. Any other being that had lost that much blood, and that many limbs, would've been long gone by now. There's a reason other medics claim that humans are almost unkillable. I really wish they'd stop that way of thinking. They're tough, but not THAT tough! -- Anon Guest
[AN: Continuing on from this ]
The crew took turns sitting with their Ship's Human. Human Baz was, as ze liked to say, in the wars. Ze'd lost a handful of short battles with some highly territorial native wildlife and only extreme measures had saved hir life.
They were all safe, but Baz had paid an arm and a leg for it. Literally. There was still a chance one hand could be saved. B'Nar could make hir mechanical replacements almost as good as the real things, but the cost remained all the same. A pound of flesh and more. Enough litres of blood to be nearly fatal. If they hadn't given hir hypothermia, ze would not be worrying the rest of the crew by pausing between breaths.
Giit tried to be grateful for advances in medical care. Remembering how, a mere few decades ago, Human Baz would have been buried instead of breathing. That didn't give as much comfort as it should have.
Humans only seemed indestructible. They could survive a great many things that should have killed them.
And then... they died slowly.
Giit and the rest of the crew would not be reassured about Baz's recovery until ze'd been back on hir feet for at least a month. And given a clean bill of health.
Something in Baz's medical machinery went 'ping'.
Baz was looking right at hir. Returning to cogniscence but still under the influence of a lot of medicine. The best painkillers they could synthesise. They had left Baz blinky and relaxed the pupils of hir eyes.
Baz smacked hir lips. If ze was going to say something, then it might indicate how well ze was going to recover. Or... if... ze was going to recover.
"...will i be able to play the piano any more?" ze mumbled.
Ah. Terran Humour. Giit could relax.
Baz was going to be fine.
[Photo by Bernd 📷 Dittrich on Unsplash]
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