By David C. Daoust
Dakota could only be surprised when she recognized the War Hero and ex-Royal, Mari Swan, unconscious on the stretcher the small group of medics had suddenly rushed into the med bay. While Dakota never truly enjoyed history, Mari had stood out amongst her studies as truly unique, even if she was of the Royal Alliance.
Not to mention, back then, the Royal Alliance was defending the Trade Consortium, amongst other fledgling governments, against the proposed tyranny of the Vanguard. Without the Alliance’s stance to allow the people’s choice in governance, they’d all be oppressed under the much more rigid rule of the Royal Vanguard.
Mari was truly a Hero throughout the Onion.
Dakota was raised on Alpha Prime, a city-station that had signed on to Trade Consortium law. Her father was a mechanic before he died and left Dakota and her mother to scrape by on a waitresses wages. They lived in a place known throughout the Consortium as the Crag; generally it meant that they were bottom class, like dead bottom. This all changed once the Consortium realized the value of the young girl’s mind. The wealthy Otomo Family stepped forward to provide the education Dakota needed to unlock her potential. Without them, she would have a third rate education, and with her mind, could only lead to mental problems.
Dakota had always been incredibly appreciative of the Otomos.
She’d often wondered what would have come of her life if she had been raised under Alliance rule. There was no competition in the Royal Alliance; they all received the same education. Good or bad education amongst the Alliance had more to do with location and luck. Good teachers did not rise to the top, for they all got paid the same no matter what they did or how well they churned out students. It did not help that Consortium managed to poach most of their ‘good’ teachers. Many of the Royal Alliance students vied for a chance at a Consortium run University.
While Dakota may have been better off with Alliance schools had her gifts gone unnoticed, she doubted she would have reached her true potential under their systems. Dakota, born in the Consortium’s Crag, knew she was blessed beyond reason, she never had to deal with any of that. She’d been handed a golden ticket throughout the Onion, and with it a first rate education.
Dakota found, as she witnessed the war hero’s arrival into the med bay, she was star struck if only for a moment, though then pushed the medics out of the way, as she began to examine the patient. She’d flipped her cane up over the woman and immediately allowed the device, common amongst her profession, to scan the injured woman’s body.
The light it cast made it possible for Dakota to see into the woman’s body, the cane itself would compare what it finds and show what may be out of place. If need be the cane could heal any minor flesh wound, even mend bones, though that took longer, and in truth the med bay held better devices for that job.
The cane picked up the nanites the woman was infected with, something it was unable to do before her investigation on Dori 5. It only took a moment for Dakota to change settings and blast the nanites, shutting them down permanently, Mari’s body would do the rest of the work.
The good Dr. Sun could tell immediately the woman would be fine with rest, and was somewhat startled that she was so relieved… though considered, without Mari Swan, a golden ticket may have never existed for anyone, ever.
Dakota glanced at the door as another group of medics brought in a young girl, whom she recognized immediately as Margo, alright at first it did cross her mind that it was Elma Parks, though that thought only existed for half a second, as she was already familiar with the stray bot’s story.
Having ruled out any danger for the war hero, she went over to the bot, which the medics could only puzzle over. Dakota was not sure what had happened, though it was pretty obvious that the bot’s data sphere had been removed.
After a brief examination of the stiff statue-esque body, she found clutched tightly in the small girl’s hand… a data sphere!
