Page 47 of Salvation for the Alien Mercenary
She blinked. Her mind flashed back to resource management games… systems buckling under rapid changes, cascade failures that happened when expansion exceeded infrastructure.
“You need to slow it down,” she said, the words tumbling out. “Buffer the transition.”
Jex’s helmet tilted her way. “Yes. But the usual stabilizing medications are proving ineffective.”
“What about—” she hesitated, knowing how it would sound. “What about combining your approaches? If he’s part human, part Latharian...”
The two medics stilled, looking at each other across Davis’s convulsing form.
“Zodiac cloning protocols,” Jex said slowly, “could theoretically interface with retro-gene editing utilized by Latharian evolutionary adaptations.”
“Could work,” Covak said. “Humans are just-altered Lathar who continued to evolve post-alteration on Earth.”
“Which means,” Jex continued, already adjusting formulations on the medical dispenser, “they have compatible base genetic structures. The Zodiac used a similar foundation when designing human-compatible cyborg systems.”
Covak bared his teeth in what might have been a smile. “Worth a shot.”
They moved like dancers in a brutal choreography. The Vorrtan medic growled instructions while manipulating physical tools; Jex ran calculations and administered compounds with microscopic accuracy.
All she could do was watch, feeling worse than useless. Her gaze fixed on his face. He’d changed since she’d first met him weeks ago. The angle of his jaw was sharper, cheekbones more defined. He wasn’t just handsome anymore. He was gorgeous, striking in a way that went beyond anything human.
The memory of his mouth on hers, hot and demanding in the observation lounge, filled her mind, followed by the horror of his limp body crashing to the deck. She forced them both away. She had to focus.
“Okay, I think we have it,” Jex announced after what felt like hours. “Metabolic markers stabilizing.”
Davis gradually relaxed against the padded medical bed, the violent seizures subsiding to occasional tremors as his breathing evened out.
“It’s working,” Covak confirmed, checking readings on the main display.
Her knees nearly buckled with relief. She gripped the edge of the nearest console, careful not to touch any controls. The tension that had held her rigid began to unravel, leaving her shaky and hollow.
“Why him?” she asked, the question escaping before she could stop it. “Why is Davis affected like this? Could this happen to any of us if we were hit by these M’Suun weapons?”
“No. The trigger is specific,” Jex said. “His DNA contains dormant sequences that the weapon’s radiation activates, similar to a targeted virus that only affects carriers with specific genetic markers. None of the rest of the crew have these markers. I checked.”
“But why would he have them?” she asked in confusion, watching his chest's slow rise and fall. “Why would an alien weapon activate them? He’s human.”
“I’m not so sure about that.” Jex turned toward them. “My analysis indicates that he has at least a partial Latharian ancestry.”
The silence that followed was heavy enough to swim through.
Covak’s expression darkened. “That shouldn’t be possible. He’s too old. Humans and Latharians have never?—”
“M’Suun,” Rann interrupted from the doorway. “The experiments years ago… What if there were pregnancies?”
She whirled to face him. “And you didn’t think to mention this possibility before?”
“I didn’t know.” Rann’s strange eyes, blue and green, fixed on Davis’s unconscious form. “The program was terminated. All subjects were accounted for.” His expression hardened. “Or so the official reports said.”
Davis groaned, his head turning to the side. The restraints creaked as he moved, muscles tensing as he regained consciousness.
“Davis?” She edged closer, ignoring the voice warning her to maintain distance and protect herself. “Hey… are you awake?”
His eyes opened. It took him a moment to focus on her.
“Mira?” His voice was rough, like it was scraped raw. “What happened?”
“You collapsed,” she explained, keeping her tone matter-of-fact. “But Covak and Jex helped you.”
