[leksbronks]

Chapter 6, part 1
----------------------------------
"CEC Investigation Committee Meeting, under Galactic Government Section C019 - Interview of CEC Detainee #55613, Medical Evaluation, dated 01/05/2357."

The Counselor's cold, stringy voice commanded the room as the gathering committee members took their seats. Once all were seated, the doors to the room slid open and Isaac, again dressed in his plain grey patient's uniform, walked in, accompanied by Dr. Werren. Right away the Counselor detected a change in Isaac's demeanor since their last meeting - his movements were slow and deliberate, and his expression seemed darker, now mysterious and prominent like the face of a storm cloud. To Isaac, the Counselor appeared warmer in spirit than he remembered, as she gestured toward the seat across the table.

"Hello, Isaac. Please, why don't you take a seat and we'll begin."

Without a word, Isaac slowly walked up to the chair, gripped it by the back and sat down. He felt the eyes of every person in the room upon him, digging into him, but he did his best to disregard them. He looked the Counselor over - physically, she didn't seem any different than she had previously. She wore the familiar white administrative uniform, with one small yet noticeable change - a tiny, thumbnail sized silver broach bearing the double-helixed marker symbol of Unitology, something he had not previously noticed about her. The Counselor was silent, shuffling some papers in a strange secretarial ritual of preparation. Dr. Werren, whose face appeared empty and emotionless, silently grabbed a seat to the right of the Counselor just as she raised her head and spoke.

"Well Mr. Clarke, I know it's been a little while since we last talked - how have you been feeling lately? Better, I hope."

Isaac crossed his arms, and with a blank, sullen expression merely stared back at the Counselor, his eyes seemingly glazed over.

"Just fine, thank you. I've been feeling pretty good, actually."

The Counselor nodded and forced a hollow smile of appreciation.

"Really? That's wonderful. I must say Mr. Clarke, I do think we got off to a bit of a rough start, but it seems you are adapting quite nicely. Your weekly examinations have revealed better results each time. You no longer appear to be suffering from the severe hallucinations and mental depression that were so evident in your character just a few short weeks ago. I think we've made some real progress."

Isaac's eyes shuffled slightly, as if scanning her for any noticeable signs that she felt contrary to her prattle.

"So, does this mean I can get out of here soon?"

She smiled, knowing he was getting impatient with the whole process. She retrieved a cigarette from her vest and lit it, took a drag and placed it gently on the lip of the ever-present marble grey ashtray and enunciated her next words with obvious emphasis on clarity.

"Well, we'll see. Your commanding officer in Mining Operations has been appealing your case recently. It appears he is quite respectful of you, he speaks very highly of your work and is recommending that you be released to his custody under certain restricted conditions. We still need to conduct some more tests, but if you continue to be as cooperative as you've proven to be thus far, we may be able to dismiss you early. You'll at least be able to get back to work, which I think will be, psychologically, very beneficial for you."

Dr. Werren appeared slightly surprised, and even concerned with the Counselor's statement. He glanced alarmingly at her, then back to Isaac. Isaac's brows lifted slightly, not sure he understood what she said.

"Really? That sounds... nice."

The smile faded from the Counselor's lips, clouding Isaac's brief moment of positivity.

"However, there are still some matters we need to address. How have you been sleeping lately?"

The uncomfortable feeling again washed over him. He sighed and hugged his arms to his chest just as he noticed the room suddenly got colder.

"OK, I suppose. I haven't had any problems."

"What about the nightmares? Are you continuing to experience them?"

For some reason, Isaac was momentarily reminded of his encounter with the disinclined nurse he had a week ago. Was it a week already?

"I don't think so... I can't remember any of them."

The Counselor nodded and darted a quick look towards Dr. Werren, who cleared his throat quietly.

"Well Isaac, according to some of the latest medical reports I've seen, it looks like you haven't been sleeping for days. Some of them report that you've been staying awake for extended periods of time, lengths up to 96 hours, without any physical or mental symptoms of exhaustion."

Isaac remained tight lipped and silent. Again, his eyes drifted from the conversation towards the window, searching for the star that had become so familiar to him during these sessions. He sensed her inquiries touching on a subject he found to be most sensitive. She continued, waving a wrinkled hand in his direction.

"Dr. Werren has stated that on several occasions, he has had to forcefully induce you to sleep with tranquilizers - requiring doses that would induce a state of coma in average patients for several days. He has reported these same dosage levels have only worked on you for periods of less than a few hours."

Dr. Werren immediately chimed in.

"This has happened on several occasions, Isaac."

Isaac still remained silent and withdrawn, but the Counselor prompted him for a response.

"Mr. Clarke?"

He glanced up momentarily in her direction, then back to the window.

"I don't know what you're talking about. I feel fine."

The Counselor remained poised, awaiting any further response from Isaac. After a long moment, she retrieved her smoldering cigarette from the ashtray and took another puff.

"Well, maybe you have something to say about some of your blood tests. They've also recently proven to contain some strange results."

Again, Dr. Werren uncomfortably cleared his throat, as if wanting to say something but not sure it was welcome of him. The Counselor, ignoring his concerned look, flipped through her papers until she reached the desired page.

"Over the past several weeks, the growing presence of an unknown pathogen has been detected in your bloodstream. We're not exactly sure what it is, but lately has become more dominant in the results. We suspect it may be a root cause of your behavioral changes - the lack of sleep, the memory loss, loss of appetite, etcetera. Do you understand what this means?"

Isaac held his breath, terrified yet somehow almost eagerly anticipating the answer.

"It means you're infected, Isaac."

Isaac shot a glare back up at the Counselor, and his heart began to pound.

"... What did you say?"

"I said that it doesn't appear to be something to worry about, Mr. Clarke. It's probably just an antibody development produced by your body during your extensive stay on the Colony. It has been often observed that when the body is exposed to foreign environments, such as that of a different planet with radically altered atmospheric conditions for long periods of time, the body will begin to naturally produce antibodies that adapt and evolve to protect it. A means of trans mutational immunity, so to speak. We don't think it's anything to worry about. You just need time to acclimatize yourself, and your levels should return to normal."

He just sat there, staring at her, listening as the beating of his heart gradually settled back to a normal pace. Did he actually hear what he heard her say?

"At any rate, your condition hasn't posed any problems so far. While you do exhibit some minor symptoms that are similar to those reported on the Aegis7 colonists, your case appears to be benign. You haven't displayed any violent tendencies against either yourself or others, and you have, for the most part, maintained your composure and cognizance. You appear to have lost some memory of your time aboard the Ishimura and the events leading up to your arrival back here as is evident from previous sessions, but these bouts of memory loss are more than likely the result of post traumatic stress, very common and expected of someone coming from your position. I'd say that pending the remaining tests we have to perform yield good results, we're confident that we can accommodate your Director's appeal and have you back among the maintenance crew shortly. These symptoms should eventually disappear as you get back into your daily routine."

The last few sentences of her speech were lost to Isaac, who was clouded in confusion, wrapping the words about "infection" around his mind over and over. Did he hear it, or just imagine it? He didn't even realize he was being addressed until the Counselor's voice arose from the smoke a few moments later.

"...So at this point, I think we're finished with today's session. You can return to the lab and we'll begin work on the concluding tests. We'll call for you again next week, Mr. Clarke."

[leksbronks]

(Okay, this is really it for tonight, I've been up all night bleeding eyeballs over this. I need to get some sleep. Again, sorry for the broken chapters, text limits and I write too damn much )

Chapter 6, part 2
-------------------------------------

At the Counselor's signal, Isaac was escorted from the room by a couple of white coated officers. The other members of the staff got up from their chairs shortly after and dispersed from the room until only the Counselor and Dr. Werren remained. Once the door was sealed and they were alone, he leaned in closer to the Counselor.

"Madam, with all due respect, I think you should reconsider passing the appeal. I think it's still too early to make any rash decisions about placing him back amongst the general populace. We don't have any conclusive information on his condition, especially with the recent blood results. He could still pose a very serious threat if we're not careful."

The Counselor finished the end of her cigarette, sat with folded hands and appeared to listen very intently to the Doctor's words. When he was finished, she nodded thoughtfully and waved her hand.

"I appreciate your concern, Dr. Werren, and I respect your opinion. However, I think that if he posed a real threat, we would have seen it by now. Things are going as planned, you've done a wonderful job of deconstructing his memory - which ultimately, is all we're truly concerned with. If he has a few... extraneous symptoms, who's to say they aren't the result of his experiences alone? I think he'll be fine. Besides, if we continue to keep him under quarantine, that may start to raise some suspicions. He's a very high-profile personality right now as far as the CEC interior is concerned; and with high rankers like Adrian Mattock filing for appeals, if his case gets even further out into the open than it already has, we may end up having some very big people to answer to."

She gently gripped the Doctor's arm.

"We need to keep things as normal as possible. Just keep your eye on him."

She nodded reassuringly and tapped his wrist, which in actuality did nothing reassure the Doctor. But realizing the futility of his position, he just sighed and submitted.

"I assure you Madam, I will do whatever it takes."

[Sarcasmic]

I love this story.
I like the subtle references to the game .like Peng.
Ands your extended ending of the game was beautifully written. I like the idea of Issac's... state of mind at the moment. We know he's right, but I don't know if we can fully trust his decisions...

[leksbronks]

Chapter 7, part 1
--------------------------------------------------

Days flew by. Exactly how many had passed, Isaac didn't know - he had lost all sense of time passing long ago. Since his last meeting with the CEC, he had been relocated from the confines of the hospital to low security domicile quarters somewhere in the west wing of the administrative sector. Though he was anxious to be released, he still was more relieved than he had been in weeks, as now he was allowed to pass his time in a more humane manner, assigned to his own suite that overlooked the starport just outside the station. He had also been given permission to wander freely as he pleased within the restricted areas of the administration sector.

He sat at the foot of his bed, considering whether he should go to the lounge for lunch, but decided against it as he just wasn't feeling very hungry. In fact, he couldn't even remember the last time he ate anything solid; but this he put down to all the stress he had been under due to the countless rounds of examination, or as they put it, recuperation. His medical overseers didn't seem all too concerned about his strange lack of appetite, so why should he? He wasn't even sure why the thought of eating had occurred to him in the first place - instinctive habit, perhaps? Still nervous, he jumped at every little noise he heard, always half expecting a troop of whitecoats to barge into his room, cuff him and drag him back down to some dingy, malevolent laboratory cell to engage in more invasive prodding.

Trying to distract himself and take his mind off his troubled thoughts, Isaac just gazed out the large, panoramic window, watching as ships slid in and out of the starport. He saw countless vessels, large and small, all either being dispatched to or returning from various missions to unknown locales throughout the galaxy, and hundreds of tiny little figures all bustling about the floor, tending to the ships. As he watched the port activity, he caught sight of a small repair crew vessel, branded with the CEC logo and a label he could barely make out as "Axiom", enter the port and land in one of the hangar bays. For some reason, a fuzzy, distant memory fluttered into his brain of a similar vessel from the past. He began to recall a multitude of distorted memories, all broken and without continuity, of being aboard such a vessel - he could faintly remember being strapped to a flight seat... glancing out the ship's front window at a distant planet, surrounded by floating asteroids... the blinding, lambent fingers of the sun penetrating the view as it peered over the planet's edge... a pair of people standing a few feet from him, engaged in terse conversation. Who were these people? He tried to remember, but the more he attempted to clear the fog from around the details, the harder it became to do so, and he felt almost as if his own mind were artificially refusing him access. He had a vague glimpse of a tall, dark, clean-shaven authority figure... an arrogant, pessimistic, long haired woman...

"How many times have you watched that thing?"

He vaguely remembered the words, but couldn't recall who the woman was who spoke. A large, shadowy mass loomed into his vision - the vision of an enormous planetcracker class ship as they approached - but he couldn't remember what it was, or why they were on their way to it. Why was he having such difficulty remembering? The chanting emerging from the back of his head kept breaking his concentration, as strange imagery of flesh eating monsters and a giant obelisk flickered like fading light bulbs between the synapses of his brain.

His frustrated pondering was shattered as he heard a knock at the door to his room. He quickly stood to his feet as the door opened, and to his surprise, Dr. Werren stepped in.

"Hello, Isaac. They're ready for you now."

Without a word, Isaac took a deep breath as he felt a bead of sweat drip down the side of his face. The keenly observant Doctor just looked and smiled a little.

"No need to worry, Isaac. It's time for your exit interview. They're just going to ask you a few more questions, and the odds are looking good that your appeal will be passed."

Isaac wasn't sure if he had correctly noted a tinge of hesitation in Werren's voice as he spoke the last few words. Though the Doctor had been rather affable with him during the extent of his time aboard the station, he was somewhat aware deep down that he Doctor was not necessarily in agreement with Isaac's being released. The Doctor continued, ushering toward the door with his hand.

"Come on, Isaac. They're waiting."

Isaac dubiously stepped forward and headed for the door. Werren followed out behind him and Isaac prepared himself in case the Doctor might cuff him in the hall, but the moment never came. Werren merely joined him at his side and the two walked down the hall until they met with a few more of Werren's associates. All with bright, smiling faces, they greeted Isaac with friendly compliments.

"Hello, Isaac!"

"It's nice to see you again. Feeling well?"

"Looks like today's going to be a great day for you, huh?"

Isaac didn't know what to say, if he should say anything, and just suspiciously continued past them towards the elevators, followed by the entourage. As they turned a corner into the main hallway, he passed by several large, aged oil portraits of the original CEC council members adorning the walls. As he looked at their cracked and fading faces, which all appeared full of imperial hope and confidence in the ingenuity of mankind, he wondered to himself if the treatments, interrogations, and now the apparently false turnaround of his overseers' friendly demeanors were what they had incipiently had in mind.

The group escorted Isaac down towards a hall of committee meeting rooms, and they stopped before one with the door closed. Dr. Werren stepped in front of the group and knocked on the door; which momentarily slid open and they all walked in with Isaac in the middle. Isaac looked around and saw all the familiar faces of the various council members present, along with a few additional faces new to these proceedings - the most notable one being that of Director of Engineering and Mining Operations Adrian Mattock, who stood off to the side of the Counselor with a warm, friendly smile that grew as Isaac walked in. This helped to put Isaac at ease a little, recognizing a familiar face that he wasn't dreading to see for a change. He gave a small, pleasantly surprised smile back. What was he doing here?

The Counselor, in her usually stone like manner, looked up at Isaac through her spectacles. A telltale cigarette smoldered away in the ashtray next to her. As she raised her head to speak, the droning chatter carrying throughout the room from the various people present died down.

"Isaac. Welcome. As you probably already know, this will be our last session. You may note there are a few additional folks present for the hearings today, including your superior, Adrian Mattock, who has been kind enough over these past few weeks to plead your appeal."

Mattock nodded affirmatively to Isaac from his position next to the Counselor. The aged crone continued, reaching for her cigarette and clenching it between her rawboned fingers.

"As we previously discussed Isaac, I would like to take the time to address the committee about your remarkable success. You have proven to be quite a shining example of recovery. In fact, you are without a doubt, the most successful case this Medical Administration has overseen in quite a long time."

Isaac wasn't endeared by her compliment. Though her delighted aire was directed at him, he knew her intent was really to applaud her own staff's efforts.

"Since your arrival back aboard the station, you have proven over the past several weeks to be very cooperative and responsive to your treatments. At this point, we feel you are ready to return to your post in Mining Operations. But before we conclude this meeting, we do have a few questions we'd like to ask of you; just a brief overview questionnaire about your time with us."

She fell silent and began to shuffle through her papers as the remaining collective of people merely looked on, all with positive faces. However, Isaac detected a tone of manipulation in her statement, and he became suspicious. Within a moment, the Counselor returned to Isaac.

"Now then Isaac. First, let's discuss your time spent with CEC medical. Do you feel they have been fair and attentive to your needs? "

"Well, I... suppose so. Can't say I have any complaints."

Contrary to his response, Isaac did indeed have a few complaints, but he doubted that anyone present was interested in addressing them seriously. Deciding that the truth might cause a delay in his release, which he was far more concerned with, he just stuck to delivering generic, thoughtless answers that he knew would reflect well upon them.

"Have you been having any more nightmares recently, like the ones you had upon your initial return?"

Isaac scratched the back of his head. He wasn't sure if he had or not; he just couldn't remember. In fact, he couldn't even recall having been in any sleeping condition that might facilitate nightmares.

"No... I don't think so."

"What about the visions? Still experiencing any of those?"

The visions? Isaac tried desperately to remember any visions. He heard a faint chanting rising from the back of his skull, but couldn't quite place where it came from. A confused look came over his face.

"No... I don't remember... any visions."

[leksbronks]

Chapter 7, part 2
------------------------------------------------------

The Counselor nodded, giving a few quick glances to her associates, who nodded back with smiles and communicating their approval wordlessly.

"If you were to return to work, do you feel you would perform to the best of your ability and without incident?"

Isaac tilted his head.

"Without incident?"

"Meaning, do you feel in a condition to continue with your current duties as is? Being a senior engineer, we understand you are often assigned to duties that are quite dangerous in nature. We just want to make sure that you feel up to returning to such a precarious line of work. We wouldn't want you getting hurt, Isaac."

Isaac shook his head. He had mistaken her inference of 'incident'.

"Oh, of course. I feel fine. In fact - no offense Counselor, but I'd really like to get the hell out of here."

A few stifled laughs arose from the surrounding group, especially from Mattock. All of them were smiling except for Dr. Werren, who just stood silently off in the shadows, watching the proceedings with a terse expression that slightly unsettled Isaac. The Counselor, smiling along with the others, just nodded.

"Well Isaac, that all sounds well and good. Do you have any other concerns you would like to address before we conclude our meeting today?"

A troubled look came over Isaac's expression, the lines of his face tightening as the thought of a bright and distant star twinkled in the back of his mind.

"Well... actually, I do. When will I be getting my flight privileges back?"

The Counselor paused. The others around her, including Werren, all looked to her.

"Well, let's just take it one step at a time, Isaac. Understand that this appeal is preliminary, and you will have to be placed on probation with restricted clearance. We can't at this time restore all of your privileges; it's just standard procedure. We want to observe your work for a period, and make sure that you're actually up to returning to your full capacity. But don't worry, Mr. Clarke - if you perform well over the probation period, rest assured that all of your previously acquired privileges will be restored to the fullest extent."

Isaac huffed irritably. He felt he was being jerked around, like a dog on a leash with the promise of release, only to be collared again unexpectedly.

"And just how long is the probation period?"

"Well, there is no currently set length of time; it's usually taken on a case by case basis. But again, I implore you not to worry. Just focus on returning to work, and let's see how it goes from there."

Isaac caught a glimpse of Mattock out of the corner of his eyes, giving him a pleading gesture to be compliant. Mattock understood the tolerance level of the Counselor was relatively low, and he was sincerely hoping Isaac wouldn't end up talking his way back into the ward. Deciding the best thing to do was to comply, Isaac just sighed and unwillingly nodded.

"Alright. If that's what you think is best, then I have nothing further to say."

The Counselor smiled a wide, toothy grin that beamed with victory. She took a look around the room, looking for any final questions from anyone present. Her eyes deliberately glossed over Dr. Werren. Seeing there were no objections, she finished her cigarette, reached across the table for the wax stamp of CEC clearance, and pressed it a few times against the paperwork handed to her by the council member sitting next to her. Tapping the pages on the table a few times to straighten them out and handing the bunch to Mattock, she turned back to Isaac.

"Well done, then. At this point your appeal has been passed, and you are now deemed fit for release. You are hereby released into the custody of Director Mattock and the Engineering and Mining Operations jurisdiction, to be temporarily placed on restrictive probation. Good luck, Isaac. I'm sure we'll talk again soon."

As soon as the Counselor fell quiet, idle chatter arose from everyone present in the room. A pair of orderlies removed the hospital ID tags from Isaac's slightly bruised wrists (where did all those marks come from?) as a few of the council members and medical staff approached Isaac to give him a congratulatory handshake. Mattock eventually approached Isaac from behind, also welcoming Isaac with a warm handshake and walked him out.

As they both left the room, Isaac couldn't help but notice that Dr. Werren's perturbed look remained unchanged the entire time.

[leksbronks]

Chapter 8, part 1
---------------------------------------------


Adrian Mattock walked Isaac down the hall towards the tram station, engaged in light conversation. Isaac felt better already - every step added between him and the Committee Chamber felt like a great weight lifted from his shoulders. He eventually felt a smile growing across his lips, one that wasn't forced this time. Mattock followed at his side, shining with a similar positivity.

"Well Isaac, it's definitely nice to have you back. I hope the CEC hasn't been too rough on you. I can't tell you how happy I am to see that you returned from that hellish mission alive and well."

"Yeah, well... I definitely feel better. I can't wait to get back to work."

As Isaac listened to his own reply, he noticed his tone was lighter than it had been in a long time. Mattock smiled, encouraged to see Isaac's old, lighthearted nature returning so quickly, and put a friendly arm around his shoulder as they approached the tram station entrance.

"We're certainly happy to have you back, Isaac. It's been a mess; no one knows that the hell they're doing. Maybe you can get your ass down there and put them jerk offs to good use for a change. Your presence has been sorely missed."

Isaac just smiled again, happy to hear his superior's motivational speech. His muscles ached for some strenuous action for a change, and his concern that his recent lockdown might have made his superior wary against putting him back to work faded quickly.

"Thanks, Director."

The vacuous, steel hallway housing the tram track echoed loudly as a shuttle neared the station, and the growing sound began to reverberate through the entire deck, gently vibrating the floor as the tram's nose pushed its way into the loading area. Accompanied by several other residents and workers dispatched to different parts of the space station, Mattock and Isaac stepped into the crowded shuttle as the doors slid open. Isaac glanced around the immediate area as people took their seats - the filthy, trash encumbered floors and smut peddling advertisements posted on the shuttle walls were a welcoming sign of relief to him, compared to the clinically sterilized and immaculate environments of the Medical Administration wing he had grown so accustomed to over his time spent back aboard the space station. The two took a seat directly across from the entry doorway, which quickly slid closed as the tram roared to life, making its way to the next destination. The soft, rhythmic clacking of the tram as it glided over the railway felt very comforting to Isaac, and the farther they proceeded from the Medical Deck, the more he began to feel like himself again.

"I'm... I'm sorry about all this, sir. I hope they didn't give you too much shit for trying to get me out."

Isaac tucked his hands under his arms, suddenly beginning to feel a little ashamed. As glad as he was to see his old friend and superior again, he wasn't entirely happy that it had to happen under these circumstances. Isaac was always very conscious of not wanting to be a burden to anyone, but ironically now he felt as if he had caused a great deal of trouble for the Director. Mattock's expression however, didn't seem to reflect any inconvenience in the least.

"Isaac, don't be ridiculous. It was my choice to fight for you; you know I've always been a little uneasy about the Ishimura mission. Those damned Unitologists are simply up to no good out there, and they don't care who they throw out into harm's way to see their ends met. I didn't like seeing you dispatched into that mess, but at the time, I didn't have a choice. Your name was specifically mentioned, so when they sent me the request, I couldn't deny it without proper cause. But after you came back, it became an entirely different case. I wanted you out of there, away from them.. especially that Counselor. She's a real bitch, and I don't trust her as far as I can impale her on a shit smeared stick. I'm worried that they've been trying to mindfuck you."

A few people sitting nearby looked up at the Director's profanity and disparaging remarks against the Unitologists, but quickly looked away. Isaac just stared at the floor, listening to Mattock who, noting Isaac's solemn and somewhat saddened gaze, headed in a more lighthearted direction.

"Well, it's all done with, now. Don't worry about the probation, I'll make sure that they don't interfere with your duties. I'll have all of their inquiries directed to me, so you won't have to deal with them anymore. I just want you to take it easy, concentrate on getting back to work. That's the best thing you can do for yourself right now."

The floorboards of the shuttle began to tremor slightly as the tram slowed, approaching its destination. As the tram pulled to a stop and the doors opened, Mattock and Isaac stood to their feet and exited, apparently the only two aboard the shuttle getting off on the Mining Operations floor. They proceeded through the gateway leading towards the main deck, and a few fellow engineers passing by gave Mattock the respectful nod of greeting a superior, then looked to Isaac, widening their eyes in surprise, as if they had just seen a ghost. As Isaac continued past he could barely hear them faintly whispering to each other. Oh my god! He's back!

Mattock and Isaac continued on through the check-in point towards the elevators leading to the main engineering hall. They stepped in and it began its slow descent down into the bowels of the station. After a moment of silence, Mattock again spoke.

"Oh, I forgot to mention - I've got a little surprise for you."

Isaac was stunned and a little wary. At this point, he just didn't know what to expect anymore. Swallowing, he looked at Mattock.

"Surprise?"

The doors slid open as the elevator drew to a stop, and Isaac was unexpectedly overwhelmed by a gathering of people all waiting for them - a large portion of the engineering staff, most of whom Isaac was already familiar with. They all began to cheer enthusiastically as Mattock and Isaac stepped out of the elevator, a few of them playfully tossing confetti and tooting annoyingly on party horns. A couple of people in the back of the crowd held up a crudely handwritten banner that read "Welcome back from hell, Isaac".

"Welcome back, Isaac!"
"You made it out alive!"
"Fuckin' a, he survived the CEC! Is he a trooper, or what?"
"Welcome home, buddy!"
"It's fantastic to have you back!"
"The Ishimura ain't got shit on you, man!"

Isaac was pleasantly surprised to see so many of his old friends - he hadn't seen anyone he recognized in so long, and now all of a sudden here they were, all at once, flooding his vision. He just smiled and slumped a little, happy and slightly embarrassed by the experience. He rubbed the back of his head and hesitantly stepped into the crowd, exchanging handshakes and arm locks with the men and warm, welcoming hugs with the women. Several folks, including White, Collins and Carter, stepped up to greet him as well, all of whom he responded with in the same friendly gesture. Carter, in an oafish manner, wrapped his large, muscular arm around Isaac's neck, shook him like a rag doll and stuck an accusing thumb out towards the other two.

"Man, Isaac - we all thought you'd be the next spot on the medical mattress. Of course, I rooted for ya, but these guys didn't think you stood a chance."

White and Collins just ignored Carter and grumbled to Isaac.

"Man, don't listen to any of this guy's shit! He's just being an asshole, as usual."

Carter just responded with an obnoxious laugh, and shook Isaac again, pleased to see him. As the crowd closed in, everyone asking random questions about his experience, Isaac was at a loss for words. He just looked back at Mattock, who drew the attention away from Isaac towards himself by raising his hands and shouting over the crowd.

"OK, OK everyone, settle down. We are extremely delighted to have our star member back on board with us, as we all know it's been hell without him. So, Isaac, without further ado, we'd like to give you a token of our esteemed appreciation of your return."

He motioned to someone in the back of the crowd, and another engineer wearing a comically undersized party hat strapped to his head and carrying a green CEC cargo crate in his hands, made his way through the crowd. He emerged from the front of the pack and approached Isaac with a big smile, handing him the large, unexpectedly heavy crate that weighed Isaac down slightly.

"Here, Isaac. This is for you."

[leksbronks]

Chapter 8, part 2
-----------------------------------------------------


Isaac, stunned, gingerly took the crate from his hands and stood there, staring at it. He felt he should say something, rather than look dumbfounded at his friends. He stammered.

"Umm, I... I, don't know what to say. It really has been tough these past several weeks, but I.. I can't say how relieved I am to be back here, with all of you. You guys are the only family I have in this world... I just..."

Isaac paused, unable to continue. He felt deep elation within him, and his voice was about to choke up. The crowd, noticing how deeply affected he was, all began to clap wholeheartedly, starting quietly at first then gradually getting louder until they all erupted in cheer. After a moment, Carter, in his overbearingly brutish manner, shouted over the rest.

"So, you gonna open the fuckin' thing, or keep us frozen in anticipation?"

Isaac sniffed quietly, smiled in response and quickly returned his attention to the crate in his hands. Holding the bottom with one hand and depressing the CEC logo on the top with the other to release the latch, he popped the top off and peered inside. The crowd all smiled excitedly as the realization of what was in the box came across him.

The first thing he saw was a helmet, brand new and shining almost iridescently in the soft fluorescent light that beamed down from the ceiling, with protective plastic shipping strips still adhered to the metal plates. It sat atop an air tight, plastic sealed suit, also brand new and unopened, along with a pair of equally shiny and unmarked gravity boots. At first, it appeared similar to the standard issue mining uniform, but with awe he realized that this was definitely not standard issue. It was a heavily modified and upgraded Tank Suit - the kind of which were in very limited and restrictive supply, incredibly expensive and generally awarded to only the highest ranking senior engineers and specialists. The arms, legs and chest were lined with thick, carbon coated titanium shield ribs, and the flexible skin was made of the highest grade Kevlar canvas that would allow its wearer to walk through even the highest temperature engine fires unscathed. The gravity boots were also heavily modified, carbon coated and titanium welded identical to the shield ribs, with two-inch thick soles and equipped with the very latest in intelligent anti-gravity response system technology. The sleeves were adorned with state-of-the-art communications and kinesis devices. Attached to the spine was a fully upgraded RIG, stasis and oxygen life support system, all of which were of a capacity beyond anything he had ever seen. From the chest hung a thick, titanium plated monitoring system that interacted with the communications array on the sleeve. The entire suit gleamed a darkened silver that appeared almost jet black at certain angles, giving the whole outfit a very dominating and ominous presence. The helmet was equally impressive, containing an advanced visor system with outer lights that glowed white-hot, almost ultraviolet in color. The plates along the sides and back were more streamlined than the standard issue helmet, making a zero-gravity space jump far more accurate and maneuverable.

"...Holy shit."

Isaac just stared into the crate, unable to speak. He had yearned for a suit of this caliber, but long knew that this type of equipment was far out of his league, even at his level. The others stood around him, smiling, until one of them spoke up.

"Look underneath, Isaac!"

Prompted by the response, Isaac carefully slid the suit to the side and saw another item that drew his attention - an equally modified plasma cutter, assembled with care by hands of the highest ingenuity. It was larger, heavier and titanium plated like the suit, thick and nearly indestructible. Instead of the standard three-line range of fire, this cutter had a five range gauge. Completely shocked, Isaac just stood breathless as the crowd again erupted in cheer. After a moment, one of the female engineers laughed and spoke.

"Sorry to disappoint you, Isaac. We know you really wanted your old suit back, but it was so badly damaged that we couldn't piece it back together. So we had to settle for this one."

The crowd laughed again, and Isaac stood silent, eternally grateful to his friends.

"You guys spent your credits to get this for me?"

The female engineer nodded.

"Well, we all chipped in some, but you should really thank Director Mattock, who footed most of the bill. You wouldn't believe how hard it is to get one of these things. We had it on order for weeks before it finally arrived."

She was interrupted by Carter, who nudged Isaac antagonistically.

"Well, try it on you fucker! It better fit ya."

Isaac, still stunned, smiled and pulled the suit from the crate. He unwrapped the suit and helmet, strapped the chest plate on, slid the pant legs up and slipped into the boots - all of which he noticed was far easier to get into than his previous suit. Within a few minutes, he was nearly fully dressed, and one of the females in the crowd stepped forward to assist him with aligning and activating the RIG and communications units as well as applying the straps around the shoulders, wrists and legs. Isaac looked down at the activation panel and flipped a few switches. Suddenly the suit sprung to life as the edges around the ribs, sleeves and boots lit up with an eerily blue glow. The chest monitor blipped on, running through initial scan sequences and responding with checksum values on the various sections of the suit. He reached for the helmet and strapped it to his head, and the multiple visor strips lit up with their near ultraviolet glow. He gripped the plasma cutter in his hands and it also came to life with glowing blue edges as it came into contact with his glove, as if responding directly to the suit itself.

As he stood before the gathering, looking up and down his arms, the smiles of the crowd suddenly began to fade - they were all unexpectedly unsettled by just how ominous and foreboding the new gear made Isaac appear. After a moment of suspenseful silence, they all smiled and clapped. Mattock, taking the opportunity, spoke.

"Isaac, again - welcome home, friend. Although meager on our parts, we hope this little gift expresses our gratefulness to you, and your loyalty to our department. We hope this will assist you with putting this entire ordeal behind you as you return to work."

Again the crowd applauded, and Carter shouted out.

"Damn, Isaac - you look really friggin' smooth. But what I think the Director's really saying is, get your ass back into the bay and get to work!"

[leksbronks]

Chapter 9, part 1
-------------------------------------------------------

Two days had passed since Isaac's return to Engineering, and he had kept himself steadily busy tending to the operations of the maintenance bay since his return with an indefatigable vigor. The crew had expected Isaac might have taken the night of his arrival off to give himself some time to rest, but they were all very surprised to see that he had worked continuously from the time he left the initial welcome gathering nonstop all through the following days. Baffled but pleased by his strangely elevated level of stamina, the rest of the engineers worked closely with him, getting him up to speed with the current issues at hand and occasionally pausing to speak with him. The few engineers unable to attend the original welcome gathering due to the workload present took the few moments they could spare throughout the course of the following days to greet him, welcome him back and try to engage him in discussion of his recent whereabouts. However, they were met with vague, ambiguous replies from Isaac, who had shown an increasing lack of desire to talk about his experiences.

It didn't take long for the crew to recognize his strange change in behavior, which, although very subtle, became more apparent to all of them as time passed. No one had seen him eat or sleep, although his apparent lack thereof couldn't be necessarily be confirmed; between shift changes and occasionally being distracted by their work, no one was able to keep their eye on him long enough to verify the suspicions. Though Isaac remained friendly and cordial towards everyone as he always had been, there were now rare moments where Isaac would suddenly become very distant and withdrawn, ignoring those around him and engaging himself almost fanatically in his work. These moments oddly seemed to coincide with questions posed to him about Aegis7, the Colony, or of Nicole. Figuring his behavioral modulations were simply the psychological result of his ordeal, they didn't give much thought to it, and decided to avoid touching on those subjects. They were all just glad that he had returned, and otherwise appeared to be fresh, vibrant and extremely helpful to them in both assistance and direction.

Isaac himself at first felt incredibly renewed and satisfied once he returned to the bay. He simply could not wait to get back to work, and his desire to continue doing so as time passed was insurmountable. Though he noted the occasional odd comment coming from his co-workers, he personally didn't identify any change in himself. Rather, he felt the world changing around him; growing slower as he moved faster, winding down as he was rising up - it was as if the world was suddenly covered in a blanket of illusion and he was the only one still standing outside of it, watching as two realities silently collided with each other while those within them remained unaware. His vision was changing - he was seeing actions within actions, multiple purposes fulfilled behind single causes... even the stars that twinkled through the hangar bay windows high above seemed to whisper of a multiplex of consequences, all set in action eons ago and only now just beginning to converge on his position with a catastrophic intensity. Once his initial delight at returning to the bay began to wear off, his state of mind was gradually replaced with this disturbing new perspective, compounded by a growing impetus to escape. But to where?

Then the chanting returned. Though it had been faint, nearly nonexistent over the course of the first day, it had never entirely disappeared - and now seemed to be returning with a vengeance by the eve of the second. He tried his best to ignore it, as he still at this point could not place where it was coming from. But the louder it grew, the more his desire to somehow leave the station increased. He subdued his instinctual impulses, as he considered them illogical - where was it he wanted to go? Until he knew, there simply was no purpose in risking it.

Confusion eventually led to frustration - frustration with the slow pace of the bay floor, frustration with his restricted clearance... he desperately wanted to get outside the station, even if just for a moment, to feel the deathly cold of space across his body once again. As he finished up a round of singularity core installations, he decided it was time to have a talk with Mattock. It was still early evening, and Issac knew he had a good chance of catching him in his office during this period; he would have most likely just returned from dinner and be going through the daily assignment reports coming up from the maintenance floor. Isaac quickly made his way to the elevator, and for some reason, he felt his heart rate accelerate slightly. The eagerness within him now turned into absolute necessity as he headed up towards the Director's Nest.

Approaching Mattock's door, Isaac pressed the call button. Mattock quickly answered, and upon seeing who it was, smiled and opened the door. As Isaac stepped in, he saw the Director at his desk, eyeglasses in place and various holo monitors activated, each one depicting pages and pages of various reports. Mattock looked to Isaac and, noting he had a somewhat concerning look in his eyes, flicked the holo monitors off and directed all of his attention to him.

"Isaac, come on in. What can I do for you?"

The door slid silently closed behind Isaac as he took a seat in front of the Director.

"Well, I'm... not exactly sure."

Mattock appeared immediately concerned.

"Are you alright? Is there anything you need?"

Isaac paused, just shook his head and sat silent. Mattock, a little puzzled, just smiled and folded his hands.

"I have to say Isaac, I'm really impressed with the way you've been handling things down there. It looks like you've really taken to being back at work, I'm glad to see it -"

Isaac, who had been sitting quietly the entire time, suddenly cut the Director short with a curt, trepid response.

"I need my flight privileges back."

Mattock, completely caught off guard, just blinked in surprise. He was not expecting this.

"Isaac... what is it? Is there a problem on the floor? Would you like to be stationed elsewhere?"

Isaac shook his head again, keeping his eyes on the Director.

"No. I just need my flight privileges back."

Mattock was stunned by Isaac's sense of urgency. He had no idea where this was coming from. He sat up a little more in his seat.

"Isaac... this has already been discussed. That just can't happen right now. Believe me, I tried, Isaac. But CEC made it very clear to me that they don't want you in that position."

Isaac just sat still for a long moment, a period of complete silence passed between them that made Mattock a little uncomfortable.

"Look, Isaac. You know, maybe you should take a day or two off, and really get some rest. Perhaps you're not totally up to getting back to routine so quickly after all... I suspect you may still be in shock and it's just starting to wear off. I don't want you to have any sort of delayed breakdowns on me, Isaac. Please."

As Mattock spoke, it became clear on Issac's face that he was becoming agitated. Though he had the utmost respect for him, he didn't like what Mattock was saying. He knew that the Director was speaking in what he interpreted to be Isaac's best interests, but Isaac knew the Director was incorrect in his assumptions of what those interests were. He completely ignored Mattock's previous statement and continued on the same tangent, leaning in closer and enunciating his next words with tenacity, eyes locked on Mattock.

"I need to get out of here."

Mattock was puzzled.

"Where is it you need to go?"

As Isaac spoke, he slowly felt the fog of his brain beginning to lift; the chanting was now a loud pressure in his head, and as he pondered, his previously inconclusive desire to leave was now becoming associated with a destination.

"Aegis7... I need to get back to Aegis7."

Mattock's puzzlement turned to incredulity.

"Aegis7? What in all hell do you need to go back there for?"

[leksbronks]

Chapter 9, part 2
---------------------------------------------

Isaac looked away from Mattock, as if something within him knew he was speaking nonsensically, but was unable to control himself. His expression, though at first blank, began to shed its solid ambiguity and fold into apprehension. The chanting had become intolerable to him by this point, and now he could also hear the faint voice of someone calling to him from the edge of a distant cliff face.

"The Marker... those people... they're going to send more people to be slaughtered out there... God... Oh, God..."

As if now ultimately released by the building pressure of the chanting voices, the grim events he experienced aboard the Ishimura, temporarily covered and clouded by the steady diet of memory-repressing drugs his administrative benefactors had been saturating him with, all suddenly leapt out of the shadows of Isaac's diluted mind with unimaginable revolt. He saw within the confines of his twisted brain the terrifying forms of those godless creatures, and as the memories spilled forth, he could see their frightening, misshapen bodies manifesting all around him - disfigured, stinking membranes stretching across the walls, taloned hands reaching for his flesh through gaps in the metal ceilings and floorboards. In that moment he saw himself, poised before them all, with his blood-smeared plasma cutter in hand, engaged by force into acts of unspeakable horror that no human should ever have to endure. He could taste the rusty, tainted blood of those creatures on his lips, seeping into the pores of his skin; he could feel their poison latching onto every molecular cell within the fibers of his being, consuming him from the inside out. Overwhelmed with inexplicable fear, Isaac quickly covered his face with his hands, uttered a small cry and pitched forward in his seat. Mattock was abashed by Isaac's outburst, startled and deeply concerned by the look of terror in the man's eyes.

"Isaac... look... I know you've had a rough time lately, I know the CEC has been unfair to you. You're a good man. You've always been one of the best engineers I've had. I pulled a lot of strings to get you out of quarantine lockdown and back into the maintenance bay. I had to do a lot of sweetalking, convincing them that you'd be fine out here. Please don't make me look like I made a mistake in doing so."

"Goddamnit... you have to listen to me! They have to let me go back! You have to reason with them... I know she's still alive... I can feel her."

Mattock pulled his head back in surprise.

"Who? Who's still alive? You're not talking about Nicole, are you?"

Isaac fell silent at the mention of her name, the tips of his fingers slowly drifting down the sides of his face, and the ghastly imagery commandeering his vision receded back just as her gentle, soft figure emerged from the darkness of his mind, calm and soothing like the light of the full moon, chasing away the horror. He could see her clearly now, standing before him with her arms outstretched, beckoning him to come closer. A looming mass of darkness behind her came into view - the dark shadow of an ominous, blackened monument of terror. His chest rose and fell violently with quickly drawn breaths. Mattock, though obviously moved by the sincerity of Isaac's pleas, just sighed and leaned back in his chair, not knowing how to respond.

"Isaac.. Listen to me. There is just no way that the watchdogs of CEC are going to let you out of their sight. They see you as a threat to the whole operation, because you know things they don't. Not that they need to use that as a reason. Why, just the fragility of your mental state alone was more than they needed to revoke your flight privileges. They will never in a million years send you back out to Aegis7... certainly not on the whimsical notion that your girlfriend may still be alive on a colony that may very well be completely alienated."

Isaac, devastated by the Director's defeating tone, lowered his gaze, avoiding eye contact, stood to his feet and relentlessly pressed on.

"This isn't about the goddamn CEC, or what they think. I need to get back there... I can still hear them in my head, I can still feel them... this isn't over, not by a long shot! They're not going to stop... ever. That Marker wasn't the end of it. If you don't let me go back, you're making a huge fucking mistake!!"

Isaac clenched his jaw tightly as he spoke, carried away with emotion. Then, realizing the audacity of his uncontrolled outburst, just fell quiet and put a hand to his head, ashamed. Mattock, wary but overwhelmed with sympathy for his friend and colleague, simply leaned forward, tenting his fingers nervously. He pondered carefully, and responded thoughtfully.

"I'm so sorry, Isaac. I can't begin to imagine how difficult all this must be for you, but you know my hands are tied by the CEC. You're under their quarantine. As much as I would like to help you, theres simply nothing I can do."

Isaac felt his skin flush to unbearable temperatures, and tears scalding with intense fury welled up in his eyes. His chest suddenly felt tight, and the walls of the room began to close in all around him. Pushed away by everyone he knew, denied at every turn... the truth was excruciatingly painful within him, ready to burst forth - but either no one would listen or was in a position to. Overwhelmed with crazed anger and frustration, he just stood there, staring hopelessly into the eyes of his superior for a long moment. Mattock felt the penetratingly dolorous stare, but at a total loss for meaningful words, could only repeat himself in a faltering voice.

"Isaac... I'm sorry."

As the finality of Mattock's words sunk in, Isaac eventually relented, slumping his shoulders. Taking a deep breath he held back the wave of utter hopelessness and turned away, reaching for the door panel. The quiet click of the latch sounded, the door began to slide open, and Isaac stepped across the threshold out into the hallway. As he headed out of the office, he suddenly heard behind him the creak of Mattock's leather bound chair, then felt his presence closing in behind him. Placing a reassuring hand upon Isaac's shoulder, Mattock quickly pulled him back into the room, sealed the door shut, and gave Isaac a long, hard look.

"Look, Isaac... I may not be able to help you... you know I'm a.... a busy man. I have a lot of things to tend to here. The missions, the crew, the entire starport... there are so many ships here, always coming and going."

Isaac's brow furrowed in confusion; he wasn't expecting this oddly out-of-context banter from his superior. Mattock leaned in a little closer, and with a lowered voice, continued.

"I'm in charge of overseeing all the traffic in and out of this place.. but there's... there's just no way I can... keep my eye on every ship that passes through. It is possible that some can slip right through my fingers... Maybe you should go down to the starport... and help the crew out with the repairs."

Isaac lost focus of his overwhelming anger for a moment, and tilted his head in question. Mattock gave Isaac a small nudge on his shoulder with his hand, and stared darkly at him, the tense momentum of his darting pupils trying desperately to convey some underlying message.

"....Do you understand what I'm saying to you?"

Isaac stood for a long moment, his exhausted brain trying hard to assemble the logic of the Director's cryptic statement. He glanced down to the floor, swallowed hard against the lump in his throat, and looked back up at Mattock.

"... Thank you, sir."

Mattock said nothing further, only acknowledged Isaac with a slight nod. Without disengaging his stare, he reached for the wall panel, opened the door and motioned Isaac to exit. Isaac stepped back out into the hallway, and the Director's Nest door slid silently shut behind him. He stood there, breathing heavily and staring at the grimy metal floor plates that lined the executive hallway. Isaac was immediately filled with a renewed sense of determination - a way out of this quagmire was opened up to him, a tiny patch of light seen from a distance in the vast darkness of space... just like that bright, distant star. Looking towards the freight elevator that led to the starport, Isaac headed right for it.

Meanwhile, back in the isolation of his office, Mattock stared at his desk, thinking of what had just transpired and the possible repercussions he might eventually have to answer to. He had no idea what Isaac was planning to do, but he had seen the sincerity in his eyes. Isaac wasn't hysterical, at least not in the traditional sense; what Mattock had seen was unmistakable - the aching desperation of a man who clearly understood something that others did not, and had a part to play that no one else could fulfill. Rubbing his hands slowly together, Mattock spoke softly to himself.

"Best of luck to you, Isaac. I hope you find what you're searching for."

[Sarcasmic]

Eppic updates.
I really like Mattock, I hope the story comes back to the Engineering, so we can have more of Mattock and the others. They're well developed for the little we got from them.
However, I'm glad Issac is going back... this story is very much a continuation of the game for me.... even if it's not canon.