Born of Silicon

Book 5 Chapter 48

I went ahead to find Cassie while the other two made their way up the building. Or at least that’s what I intended to do. Cassie was already running back.

“They’ve got a hospital, but no surgeons left.” She reported. “They can’t do anything more than first aid.”

“I can do it.” Drew offered. “Well, in theory. I’ve only ever assisted Sonia, not performed surgery on my own, but I do have a collection of textbooks and papers I can rely on. And I’m doing simulations currently to practice. You’re her family, it’s your call if you want to try and get her to Sonia, or if I should do it.”

“We’ll get her onto a bed and figure out how bad things are. If there’s any chance she won’t make it to Sonia, you do it. I’m not losing her.”

“I’ll make sure I’m prepared.”

Cassie led the way into a stripped down hospital. There were a few people in there, patients and doctors with little education doing their best. I took care of telling them what was going on and that we needed a surgery room while Cassie ran off for our medical supplies. Enough money got them to not bother us, and a little more got them to assist Drew.

We worked fast, as fast as we could. We spread out tools while Drew checked her vital signs.

“We should operate now.” He said. “Vince, get a blood transfusion started.”

“On it.”

Drew did his best through the surgery, but there was only so much he could do without practical experience. There was so much necrosed tissue around her eye that had to be removed. He wasn’t concerned at all about potential scarring, not when there was so much that needed done.

We were in that surgery room for hours. He did it though. It was a success.

“All of you get out.” Jade ordered. “I’ll wake her up.”

“We’ll be right outside.” I promised.

Jade didn’t respond, she just kept a close eye on Ivy.

We did what she asked, and posted up just outside the door. It wasn’t long before Ivy came back to consciousness, and that marked the start of an argument. I can’t blame Ivy for being angry, I think anyone would. Even if it was to save her life, we knocked her out and stole her eye without asking.

“I’m surprised you ever forgave them.” I interrupt. “Someone messing with me while I was off was one of my biggest fears when I was in the lab. Although my concerns were more mental than physical.”

“Honestly? Me too.” Ivy agrees. “At the end of the day though, she’s the reason I’m sitting here now. There’s no chance I would have ever trusted her to help me, I didn’t want to be helped. Even if she was my sister, someone I know wants only what’s best for me, it still took a long time to rebuild the trust lost that day. I think what did it was that she was fully expecting me to hate her forever, and was prepared to accept that if it meant I was alive.”

Jade stayed in there for hours, and I stayed right by the door, occasionally bringing food and water, plus whatever meds Drew said she needed to take. I could hear them yelling at each other, crying, talking. Cassie could hear their every word, and once she was sure they weren’t going to kill each other, she left, not wanting to eavesdrop on such a private conversation. Drew stayed close by as well, just in case she needed more medical attention.

When they finally came out, both of them had red, puffy eyes from crying. Both of them were exhausted. Jade was supporting Ivy, who could barely walk.

“What are the chances we can get home now?” Jade asked. 

“The batteries still need time to recharge. I could try to trade for some fresh ones, but no promises.”

“Do that. We'll meet you at the car.”

“Alright.” I got to work. The car had been charging for hours at that point, it didn't actually need all that much extra juice to get home. Just a few batteries stored in the trunk. I overpaid by a lot, but that's fine. That town needed the money.

Ivy was incredibly uncomfortable. She rightfully didn't trust any of us. Just her and Jade in the back was tight enough, trying to squeeze in a third would have just stressed her out more. Cassie, thankfully, came to the rescue.

“I'll ride in the trunk.” I'm pretty sure all of us gave her a thankful smile.

Drew ended up driving as always, and we made our way home.

Ivy was struggling, to say the least. That conversation with Jade and part of the drive was the longest she'd been sober for a while. Jade was understanding. Getting her home was all that was important, and if that meant she had to make most of the ride half-conscious, that was fine. Anything to make her more comfortable. We tried to do it safely though, no more used needle injections. We left an IV in her after the surgery, and put some of her stuff in a saline bag.

Arc City came into view before the next storm hit, after another 35 hour drive, and we pulled inside the parking garage. We closed the door behind us, leaving us separated from everyone else.

“Tell Silver to clear the courtyard.” Jade demanded. “I don't want them breathing down our necks.”

“I'll do it.” I stepped out of the car and through a small door to the garage.

People were interested. Us leaving that close to a storm and already returning? How could they not be? Thankfully, they listened when I told them to clear out. 

Jade helped Ivy out of the car, while Cassie went to tell Sonia to get ready for a new patient.

We headed into Sonia’s garage and got her laid out on the operating table. Sonia took her in, a very interesting problem worthy of her attention.

“How is she still alive?” Sonia asked nobody, and got to work. And she needed a lot of work.

“I ask myself the same question.” Ivy mumbled.

“Fair enough.” Sonia reached out and pulled back the bandages around Ivy’s head. I'm still surprised she didn't recoil.

“I did what I could.” Drew informed her before she could ask anything. “Here's what I was dealing with.” Drew held up a tablet with a collection of pictures he memorized of the surgery.

“How the hell are you still alive?” Sonia asked once again. “Your new eye needs to go in now, before things have time to scar over too much. I assume you want the best?”

Ivy just shrugged, not caring what happened to her.

“The best you've got.” Jade confirmed.

“Cassie, I need you to make a run. Middle of the city there's a prosthetics shop, Zeke's. Tell him I'm calling in that favor and to give me the best eye he's got.”

“On it.” Cassie sprinted out.

“Alright. New eye. What else?”

“Withdrawl means she'll need to use more, but she’s promised she’ll try to reduce her use.” Jade said. “Make sure she can do so safely, and we've agreed that anything she uses should be recorded and I can have access to it.”

“Fine. I'm going to install a few ports then.” Sonia spun up a few of her tools and started manufacturing exactly what she needed. “It'll keep you from doing more damage to your veins, just make sure you rotate which one you use. I'm also sticking a canister in your chest. If you OD it'll keep you alive, and if you're neglecting your nutrients, it’ll even you out. That should keep you from killing yourself. I'll tie its content into your eye so you can check how much is left. Find me when you need a refill. Anything else?”

Ivy’s face moved for the first time, lighting up at that.

“That's a good start.” Jade nodded.

“Your eye is going to require some minor brain surgery. I’m going to put you into a half-conscious state. You won’t remember anything.”

“That’s fine.” Her words carried excitement, not apprehension or fear. “And pain meds?”

“Your sister will hold on to them.”

“Wait, no, no I can hold on to them. It’s fine. Jade won’t care.”

“Take that up with her.”

Ivy argued a little more, but Sonia had already turned her focus to work. She never even responded. The pain pills were Ivy’s biggest focus though.

Cassie got back before Sonia was done with her creations. She had a small box, inside sat the same eye Ivy still has today.

It wasn’t long before the surgery started. She called in a few assistants, and Drew helped as well. I kept Jade company in the corner of the shop, the two of us watching everything.

Ivy was worked on for hours. Seeing her partially conscious, able to talk and respond while Sonia poked around in her brain was certainly an experience. Brain surgery always is.

Sonia at least had a machine to actually do most of the work. An old AI-designed surgery bot that could get wires and sensors implanted for cybernetics to interface with a human brain. Getting to the brain and installing the eye though? That was all Sonia. Her ports and canister, those too were all Sonia and her helpers.

When they were wrapping up, Jade excused herself. She was only gone for a few minutes, only long enough to get meds from the infirmary and to tell them not to give Ivy anything without her verbal permission while present. She was very insistent on that.

Ivy slowly came back to her senses under Sonia’s close watch. Reality started to weigh on her, and her pain started to break through.

“Oh fuck. What did you do to me?” Ivy was groggy, and reached up to touch a plastic cover over half her face.

“Cut out some dead flesh, grafted some new stuff in its place, poked around in your brain, put a few holes in you, filled up your canister with everything you need. Little more than I planned, but you needed it. Get some food, get some water, get some rest, and you’ll live. Give it a few weeks and I’ll turn on your new eye, but expect it to take a long time to adapt.”

“You promised pain meds?” It took only a moment for her attention to switch back to what she thought was really important.

Sonia just glanced over her shoulder, leaving the decision to Jade.

Jade has always been good at reading her, no matter how much Ivy tried to hide what she was really feeling. She knew Ivy wasn’t in bad pain yet, just a little discomfort. But equally, she didn’t want to sit there and say no, she didn’t want to be the villain if she didn’t have to be.

“I know which one you want. You get one anytime in the next six hours, and other than that, you only get some pills to keep down the inflammation. You sure you want it now?”

Ivy nodded, her eye wide.

“Fine.” Jade gave her what she wanted, and the building anxiety inside Ivy melted away. “I’m going to trust you with your own room. We’ve got a diver here plugged into an intercom next to every door. If you need anything, just ask. Vince is reliable if you don’t want to talk to me, and I’m sure Silver will be around to introduce themself. They’re the person that runs this place. We have a canteen, and if you don’t feel like walking, I’ll bring you food if you need it. You’ll be safe here, with no worries for as long as you need.”

Ivy wasn't paying much attention.

Jade just gave a sad frown and helped Ivy into a wheelchair.

“I’m going to set her up next to you.” Jade told me. “Keep an eye on her, please.”

“I’ll help where I can.”

“Thank you.”