Day 95

[from ARK]

After stopping off at the ARK's biology centre, where most of Professor McCarthy's future colleagues were sadly absent, he and Professor Gibson eventually made their way to the ARK's medical centre in search of Professor Gerald. Either side of the entrance were rows of cubicles, each containing a pristine white bed and an assortment of state-of-the-art medical equipment. Though there were at least twenty beds, with doors leading further wings, there were only two patients at the moment. One was a boy of about eight who was laid up in bed with what seemed to be a fever, a thermometer dangling from between his lips; a subtle reminder that the scientists were not the only people aboard the ARK.

The other patient, sat on a bed just to their right, was also a civilian, a woman of about twenty-five. She was quite beautiful, aside from two rather gruesome old wounds that seemed to be the cause of her visit. An eyepatch that had presumably been placed over her left eye had been lifted up to reveal the scarred, empty eye socket beneath, and her upper left arm, exposed by her rolled-up sleeve, had several larger scars running across it. At any other facility, the doctors might not have been able to save it, thought Prof. McCarthy.

The woman was currently being tended to by a female doctor, who appeared to be testing how well she was able to see with just her one eye. The two ladies noticed the men as they entered, but did not otherwise acknowledge them, continuing to go about their business as before.

"Good afternoon, Dr. Hendry," said Professor Gibson, stopping momentarily to greet them. "Good afternoon, Miss Lubiński."

"Good afternoon, Professor," said Dr. Hendry, going about her business as before.

Miss Lubiński nodded, replying in a diluted Eastern European accent. "Good afternoon, Mr. Gibson."

"How can you tell up here?" asked Professor McCarthy.

"Clocks, both bodily and otherwise," replied Professor Gibson. "You'll get the hang of it pretty quickly. Ah, yes; this is Professor James McCarthy," Gibson continued, gesturing at his companion. "He'll be starting here tomorrow. Professor, this is Doctor Julia Hendry, our resident optometrist. With any luck, you won't need to see too much of her."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," said Prof. McCarthy, bowing slightly in greeting.

"Likewise," said Dr. Hendry.

"And this," said Professor Gibson, gesturing at the woman, "is Gabryjela Lubiński. Her father was the late Professor Dariusz Lubiński, who assisted a lot of our early research here on the ARK."

"You're Professor Lubiński's daughter?" repeated McCarthy, surprised. "I've read his research papers. He was a great scientist. I was saddened to hear that he'd passed away. It was a couple of years ago now, wasn't it?"

Gabryjela nodded, looking a little saddened by the sudden memories of her deceased father. "Almost three years," she said.

Professor McCarthy nodded. "I never got the chance to meet him, but he sounded like a good man."

"He was," said Gabryjela, nodding.

"Alright, we'll let you get on with your appointment now," said Prof. Gibson. "I'll see the two of you later, then."

The two women nodded, and the two professors continued down through the medical centre. Once they were out of earshot, Prof. McCarthy couldn't resist asking in a low, quiet voice, "So, uhh… what happened to her? Those injuries look like they were sustained only a few years ago, and I'm guessing she was here at the time-"

Professor Gibson held up a hand, signalling for him to stop. His expression suddenly turned grave. "Look. There's certain things here in the colony that we just don’t talk about. What happened with Gabryjela is one of them. You're better off not knowing. Understood?"

Professor McCarthy knew that whatever incident had resulted in Gabryjela's injuries, it must have been a major one, something that had rattled the entire colony to the extent that they refused to bring it up. But if that was the case, then there was no use inquiring further about it. If he needed to know, or they wanted him to know, they would tell him. In the meantime, he would just have to suppress his curiosity about the incident. He gave Gibson a curt nod. "Understood," he said. "I guess I have a lot to learn about how this place works."

"You'll pick it up pretty quickly," said Professor Gibson. "Everyone does. Now then…" They had reached a door at the end of the corridor, beyond which lay the specialized medical facilities that catered to Maria. Signs on the wall next to the door highlighted this fact, as well as the need to be completely sterilized before entry.

"I'll go in first, and tell Professor Gerald you've arrived," said Prof. Gibson. "The light will go out once I've been sterilized, and then it'll be your turn." He pointed to a circular red light above the door, that was currently switched off. "I know you were sterilized before you got on the shuttle, but Gerald just likes to be careful. Besides, I dare say our sterilization systems are better than those on Earth." He took hold of the handle and pulled open the door, revealing a small chamber with a faint green glow inside. "I'll see you in a minute, then."

Prof. Gibson closed the door behind him, and the red light above it winked on. Prof. McCarthy could hear muffled hissing sounds coming from within, and after a short time that couldn't have been more than forty seconds, the sterilization was complete, and the red light turned back off again. Prof. McCarthy opened the door and stepped into the sterilization chamber himself, closing the door behind him.

A second after closing the door, the professor found himself being sprayed with strong disinfecting jets from both sides, and from above. They were very powerful, and rather hot, but they sprayed in very short bursts, only a fraction of a second each, making the experience far more bearable than it might otherwise have been. The nozzles of the jets moved slowly around, making sure they sprayed every square inch of Prof. McCarthy's body, killing any germs that could possibly have been on his skin. The whole process took little more than thirty seconds, and when it was done, the door at the other end opened automatically, ushering him into the isolated chamber.

The walls and ceiling here were not the starched white of the main medical bay: they were a blinding sky blue, with fluffy clouds painted here and there. It would almost look like a child's bedroom, if not for the masses of machines, computers, and other miscellaneous equipment that filled the room, covering the back wall entirely. Amongst all this chaos, there was only a single bed, and again, this was not an ordinary hospital bed. It was a king-size four-poster bed, with pastel pink sheets. It occurred to Prof. McCarthy that this wasn't just Maria's treatment room; at times when her condition was worse, this would be like a second home to her. The professor had done all he could to make it comfortable for her, in spite of the masses of machinery around the room.

The professor himself was sat at Maria's bedside. He was a short, very rotund man, with a large, bushy grey moustache and round pince-nez glasses, that appeared to have a spiral pattern in the lenses. Professor Gibson was stood next to him, waiting for his companion to enter. "Ah, here he is now," he said as McCarthy entered, causing Gerald to look round. He offered the newcomer a kind smile that was, unfortunately, mostly hidden beneath his voluminous facial hair.

"You must be Professor James McCarthy," he said, getting to his feet. "I've heard so much about you. I'm Professor Gerald Robotnik. Please, call me Gerald." He took McCarthy's hand and shook it; his hand was warm and sweaty, and his grip was firm. "Welcome to Space Colony ARK. I'm sorry I couldn't be at the docking bay to welcome you, but I'm sure you'll understand, given the circumstances. I trust Professor Gibson gave you the grand tour?"

"He did, yeah," said Prof. McCarthy. "I still can’t believe you designed this whole station by yourself… it's enormous!"

"I'll take that as a compliment," said Gerald, smiling. "Thank you. I consider this station to be my pride and joy. Well…" He turned back to the bed, his gaze resting on the sleeping figure within. "My second-greatest pride and joy."

The pair of them walked back to Maria's bedside, joining Professor Gibson, and Professor McCarthy caught his first glimpse of the girl sleeping soundly within. Her covers were pulled right up to her neck, so all he could see of her was her pale face, and the thin, delicate fingers that clutched gently at her bedsheets. She was young, only about eleven or so, and definitely small for her age. She had long blonde hair, and several stray hairs trailed their way across her pillow as she slumbered. An oxygen mask covered her face, obscuring her mouth, misting up slightly every time she breathed out. Her chest rose and fell with each quiet breath she took, and other than the quiet hums of the machinery surrounding her, and the rhythmic, reassuring beeping of her heart monitor, the room was completely silent for a moment.

"This is my grand-daughter, Maria Robotnik," said Professor Gerald. "She means the world to me. But… she's dying. And here on the ARK, I'm trying to save her."