As G-889 Turns
Episode #7: In The Cold Morning Light
The light broke upon him suddenly, blindingly. He opened his eyes to the light and then couldn't fully block it out again even as he squeezed them shut tight. His head was on fire with it. He groaned -- and that somehow made it worse.
"John? John? Can you hear me? Talk to me. Come on, big fella. You're almost there. John, please."
"Mwake," he mumbled. His throat was dry and the words barely crackled out of him. "I'm awake," he repeated, his voice still gravely but the words faintly more understandable.
Julia laughed despite herself. "Atta boy!"
"I feel like hell," he croaked.
"Well, that's an improvement. Because for the last few days, you haven't felt like anything." She held a cup of water to his lips and he managed to get a little of it down his throat as she continued. "You've been in a coma for almost a week. You've had us all terrified for you."
"Coma?" he repeated, his voice returning slightly.
"That's right. Out cold. Walman!!!" she shouted. John cringed as the sound echoed in his head and Julia patted his tummy in half-hearted apology. "Walman, look who's decided to join us," she smiled.
Walman had barely gotten his head inside the tent flap. He beamed at the sight of John Danziger lying there with his eyes half open. "About damn time, too," he teased.
Julia sent Walman out with a protein mix and instructions to heat it to lukewarm. "I bet you're starving," she told John. "I've been giving you injections of nutrients but I haven't been able to synthesize everything I wanted."
John only groaned again. "Maybe later, I just wanna sleep now."
"You've slept plenty already. Trust me. We need to get some food inside you. We'll have to start out slow. Your system probably won't be able to handle solid food for a while. You're going to get very tired of my attempts at broth before then."
"Mm-hmm," he replied groggily. "So, wake me again when dinner's ready."
"No, no. No slipping away again. I know of someone who'll want to see you right away. And, in the meantime, I have a few tests I'd like to run."
Julia proceeded to run her diaglove the length of John's body while asking him to wiggle various bits here and poking other bits there. "Well, for a man we weren't sure was going to live, you seem to be in pretty good shape."
"I don't feel like I'm in pretty good shape," he grumbled. "I feel like I've been hit in the head with a lead weight."
"Close. Alonzo hit you in the back of the head with a wrench."
Julia braced herself for John's reaction. She knew it was unlikely that he would be able to remember the incident immediately prior to the near-leathal blow, but she expected John's temper to hold true regardless.
John scowled as he tried to remember the incident. Julia's mind quickly ran over the details so that she could explain to him how it happened. But she was unprepared for the one question that he asked.
"Who's Alonzo?"
CONTINUED IN THE NEXT INSTALLMENT
Author's Chapter Notes:
WARNING: This is a continuing soap opera. If you haven't read the prior installments of the As G-889 Turns saga yet, this will make no sense whatsoever.