Page 39

D oc Gray’s one of the most modified people I’ve seen, aside from the Kuus rat-men.

Where the rats are tribal and their modifications have a kind of uniformity, Doc Gray’s modifications are unique. He doesn’t look quite like a fish. Or quite like a frog. Or anything else I can name. But he’s a lot closer to some kinda amphibian than he is to a mammal.

He signals his arrival by the high-tech method of throwing pebbles at my window. I walk out onto my deck and peer over the rail. His hairless, crested head bobs in the water two meters from the shock barrier.

“I assume you’re aware of the unfortunate gentleman over there,” he says, nodding at the corpse.

“Yeah.”

“Very well.”

I turn off the shock net so he can climb over it and up onto my deck. Hand him a towel. His body is lightly covered with transparent scales, and he’s wearing a silver-green neopoly dry suit from waist to knees, so he probably doesn’t need the towel. But it seems polite .

He uses the towel, whether he needs it or not. Folds it neatly before handing it back to me. Holds out his hand and shakes mine. “A pleasure, Mister Snow. You’re looking substantially better than the last time I saw you.”

“Gather I was missin’ some skin.”

“And some bones. Would you mind taking a few steps for me?”

I do, walking a couple of steps across the deck away from him and then back.

“Excellent,” the doc says. “Shall we?”

He’s been in my place several times now, so he probably doesn’t need me to lead him in, but it seems polite, and Doc Gray is nothing if not polite. So much so, I’m having a hard time picturing him shouting at that Tyngaling doc. Wish I’d been awake.

Inside, I offer him a drink, brew up a fresh pot of klee tea when he accepts. That’s the first food or drink Doc Gray has accepted from me, and I wonder if that’s because he’s becoming comfortable with me, or just ‘cause he’s thirsty. It is a long swim from the Clouds.

We stand around my kitchen, drinking our tea, making small talk. Feels comfortable, despite the fact that he’s such a heavy Mod he doesn’t even look human anymore. He knows more about who I really am than anyone but Kez, and he’s seen both of us naked more often than he’s seen us clothed.

When we’ve all finished our tea, Kez leads the way into my workroom. I clear away the flimsy I was using to sketch the brand, and Kez spreads a clean thermoblanket over my workbench.

“Which one of us you want to see first?” I ask.

Doc Gray tilts his head. Blinks his translucent eyelids over his fish-goggle eyes. “Ladies first, of course. But first, if I may, I would very much like to see that.” He points to the flimsy.

“Sure,” I say.

Kez is closer and she fetches it for him. He sets it down on the workbench and peers at it. I wonder what he sees. I’m pleased with it. But I’m not sure what it looks like to an outsider .

The fish-doc runs his fingertips over the flimsy. “This is beautiful.”

“Thanks,” I say.

“What, may I ask, is it?”

Kez and I trade guilty glances. I shake myself. There’s no reason for either of us to feel ashamed. “It’s a brand,” I say.

“I thought it might be.” Doc Gray taps the design. “I assume this is for Miz Kerryon.”

He’s examined Kez more than a few times, so he’s probably noticed the marks I’ve left on her. He’s too polite to mention them, though. “Yeah, an’ for me.”

“Have you branded anyone before?”

I shake my head. Feel my shoulders tighten. He’s a meddie, and he’s spent a lot of time healing me and Kez. I can see why he might object to us purposely injuring ourselves. Or me giving Kez more scars.

“Heat the brand to five hundred Celsius. Hold it on the skin for no more than two seconds. Any longer, you’ll burn into the muscle.

Just touch the metal to the dermis. For permanent scarification, you need to keep the wound open for several days.

I’ll provide you with a gel for that. I do not recommend debriding the wound as that can result in uneven scarification.

There’s a substantial risk of infection with the wound open, so if there’s any heat or excessive redness, I want you to see me immediately. ”

Kez and me nod like v-school kids. The knot at the back of my neck loosens. I should have known that someone who has modified himself as extensively as Doc Gray wouldn’t object to whatever alterations we wanted to make to ourselves.

“This will make a beautiful scar. I’ll look forward to seeing it as it heals.” Doc Gray hands the flimsy back to Kez.

She smiles at him. Tucks the flimsy away. Then she takes off her top and climbs up onto the workbench so he can examine her. I watch with interest. I was with Kez for the first of her regen treatments, which was mostly Doc Gray doing tests. She’s gone by herself since then.

Doc Gray carefully examines the scar, which looks a lot better, even in the bright morning light, than it did the first time I saw it in darkness.

He gently stretches the pink, ridged skin between his webbed fingers.

Watching, I remember my first impression of Doc Gray: his cool hands working inside my shoulder.

“How is this side feeling?” Doc Gray asks Kez, concentrating on the left side of the round scar. “Are you experiencing any increased flexibility?”

“Some,” Kez says.

“The overgrowth is reduced, but not as much as I would like. I’d like to vibride this side one more time.”

“Okay,” Kez shrugs.

Doc Gray opens the bubble-pack he’s set on the floor next to my workbench and takes out a bulb of clear goo and a machine no longer than my finger.

One end bristles with tiny needles so fine they look like hairs.

I grimace to think of that being applied to my kitten’s tender skin.

I move around to the other side of the workbench where I can look Kez in the face instead of watching what he’s doing to her back.

She winks at me. “I stopped watching after the first time, too.”

“Do you feel it?”

She shakes her head as Doc Gray fires up his little machine with a sound like a cat purring. I watch her face to see if she flinches. Which she does.

“Thought you said it didn’t hurt?”

“That’s the gel. It’s cold.”

“Apologies, Miz Kerryon,” Doc Gray says. “The water is still cold this time of year and my pack is not insulated.”

“No problem,” Kez says. “It’s fine now.”

The purring sound goes muffled and I know that’s because the fish-doc has stuck all those tiny needles in Kez’s skin. She doesn’ t show any sign of pain, though. Guess the chilly gel has done its work.

“Whaddo you think about while he’s doin’ this, kitten?

” I ask her, curious as to how she feels about the procedure.

She was reluctant to have the scar regenned, and I’ve never understood why.

I see it as a badge of honor: a medal to her ability to survive.

But I know she doesn’t see it that way, so there’s no reason she’d want to keep it.

“Being able to run without feeling like there’s a drawstring in my back.”

“Once we break up these adhesions, you should experience more normal muscle movement,” Doc Gray says. “There’s already been some regrowth of the serratus posterior inferior.”

Kez grins. She mouths at me, “Sounds dirty.”

I flick her on the ear. Share her chuckle.

“There’s also a spinning move that I’ve never been able to do because I can’t twist fast enough,” she says. “I’m hoping I’ll be able to do it soon.”

“Is this the fire performance art?” Doc Gray asks. “I heard you performed in Tiv. I am very sorry I missed it.”

Kez and I both glance at the fish-doc over her shoulder. Neither of us even thought to invite him. We say, “Sorry,” at almost the same moment.

“I don’t know when we’ll be out your way again, but we’ll be sure to let you know,” I say.

Doc Gray meets my eyes over Kez’s shoulder.

Nods his crested head and goes back to work.

He’s extremely hard to read because he looks so alien, but I think we hurt his feelings.

He probably feels left out a lot. I make a mental note to include him in the future.

I like the doc; I don’t want him to feel excluded just because we’re used to doing our own thing.

And something tells me he probably feels excluded pretty often.

I make another round of tea while Doc Gray finishes off with Kez.

Sip it while he inspects my head and back.

He spreads a sticky cream over the newskin strips, which slough as I watch.

Underneath is shiny pale skin that darkens to my deep bronze.

I run my fingers down the back of my arm.

The new skin feels very clean, very soft.

“What is that?” I ask. Usually you spray newskin on, wait a day or two for it to peel and then wait a few days longer for it to darken up and feel like normal skin.

Doc Gray hands me a bulb that’s labeled Fraunacoat in Uni.

“You can keep that, if you like,” he says.

“It’s an additive. It toughens the artificial dermis and causes the protective collagen to peel.

It’s a fairly good match for your skin tone.

Do not apply it until the newskin has cured for at least six hours. ”

I’m darker than most natives, so the commercial newskin I buy isn’t ever a great match. I bounce the bulb on my palm. This will make me look less like a harlequin as I heal. “Thanks, Doc.”

“My pleasure. Now, two more things. First, I brought you this.” He hands me another bulb, labeled Topix . “Before you use that, I’d like to examine the area just to make sure that it is merely irritation. Perhaps you’d like Miz Kerryon to leave for a moment?”

I chuckle. He’s talking about my dick. I’m already undressed, and Kez is more than passingly familiar with what the little monster looks like. I strip off my skivvies and lie down on the workbench. “Go ahead.”

Doc Gray handles the little monster with the same professionalism that he does everything else.

His hands are too cool to stimulate me, for which I’m grateful, since Kez is watching with a huge grin, probably waiting for me to pop pseudowood.

As he’s examining the underside of the little monster, Doc Gray reaches into his bag for another bulb, pulls back my foreskin and spreads a white gel all over my glans and down the underside of my shaft. Glad I’m limp.

“Miz Kerryon,” Doc Gray says as he works. “I will ask you to leave the room for a moment now. ”

Kez raises an eyebrow at me. I shrug. She leaves and Doc Gray waits until we hear the snick of the porch window-wall.

“What’s wrong?” I ask, propping myself up on my elbows.

“Nothing’s wrong ,” the doc says. “However, I wish to discuss two matters with you, both of which are personal and one which I do not wish Miz Kerryon to hear.”

“Okay,” I say evenly, watching him and letting him continue in his own time.

“First, as you may already be aware from the discomfort, the skin of your corona has torn.” He nods his crested head at my dick.

“I would not presume for force abstinence on you—” At my lifted eyebrow, he concedes, “Nor do I think you would heed such a restriction. But you are likely to develop an extremely uncomfortable infection if this is not allowed to heal. Apply the Topix twice a day and after any bathing or sexual activity.”

“No problem,” I say.

“I also wish to speak with you about Miz Kerryon.” Doc Gray takes a deep breath, in and out, before he continues.

“I am hesitant to bring this up, but I know how protective you are of her well-being, and that your latest injuries were sustained in her defense. Further, I would not normally discuss one patient with another.”

“I understand,” I say, not liking where this is going.

“I am concerned about Miz Kerryon’s mental health. She’s showing signs of extreme stress.”

“Yeah, I know.”

“Do you? The bio-readings I’ve taken this morning are alarming.

I’m aware that she is no longer running as much as she used to, and I would have expected her weight to increase at least slightly with the reduction in activity.

Instead, she’s lost a kilo since I last saw her.

Her heart rate, respiration and blood pressure are all elevated.

Miz Kerryon is a conditioned athlete. Her biometrics are extremely stable.

These readings are so unusual that I’m considering sedating her. ”

Remembering how gaunt I thought she looked last night, I nod.

“If I thought it was safe, Doc, I’d let you put her under and take her back to Tiv with you.

But they took a shot at us in public, right down the street from your place.

Nowhere is safe. Not even here.” I tip my chin in the direction of the river, and its corpse.

“The best thing I can do is keep her moving. And take down these fuckers before they get another shot at her.”

“I cannot condone killing, Mister Snow, not under any circumstances, but if that is the source of Miz Kerryon’s stress, and you can eliminate it, then I suggest you do so. With all haste.”

No pressure or anything. “Will do, Doc.”