Jaydee tutted as he flicked between the channels on the entertainment system, not sure what he wanted to do with himself. He’d been in the Exemption Bay for a year and a half, and he still felt he hadn’t quite settled in yet.
The D-Class Ksa’s internal thoughts were interrupted by the sound of someone asking if they could sit down next to him. Jaydee glanced upwards, not expecting to see the young K-Class.
“Oh, hey kid. Yes, of course, sit!”
Arkay sat down awkwardly, as far away from Jaydee as possible. There was a bandage wrapped round his arm, right in the joint. There was also an odd smell in the air, something that Arkay was clearly aware of.
“I’m sorry. It’s the smell of dead skin and an unwashed body…” Arkay muttered. “I’m not allowed to wash myself or have a proper shower, in case the water washes away the dead skin and exposes the new skin too soon, making that also die and decay… I… I don’t even know any more…”
Jaydee could clearly see the kid was stressed. “It’s fine. It’ll pass. Not nearly as bad as when Aziten decided he wasn’t going to wash himself in some sort of delusional religious rant. Medics are fine when a vok is willing, but it’s nigh impossible dealing with a crazy Ksa with telekinisis… So… Got your drip removed?”
The change in conversation immediately perked Arkay up. “Yeah, finally! No longer tripping over the damn thing.”
“Understandable,” Jaydee smiled as he leaned back, stretching his legs out. Mechanical braces helped make the movement more fluid. “How long you in here for?”
As quickly as Arkay’s mood improved, it worsened. As soon as they were done with this topic, Jaydee knew to move it on to something else.
“Indefinitely, as far as I can tell.”
“Forever?” Jaydee asked.
Arkay sniffed, wiping his face with his non-bandaged arm. “Yeah. Six months probably. Two years if I’m lucky.”
“Wait…” Jaydee paused, reiterating Arkay’s words in his head. “The Excemption Bay is for long-term stays over two years or… terminal cases…”
“Yep, terminal cases… They’re not sure yet though. But enough of me, what about you? I only briefly saw you when Veeyel introduced me to everyone…”
Jaydee glanced at his legs. “Well, you’re not supposed to know about D-Class Ksa.”
“Special Ops, search and rescue and data capture mostly, right?”
“Heh, forgot you were K-Class!” Jaydee smirked. “Pretty much. Back in March ’14, we were trying to save a couple of Cassid hostages taken by an angry Banikan anti-reptilian cult. Made a wrong move, got gored by a particularly nasty electric Banikan, which interfered with my spinal cord and caused my legs to stop working right. Been in rehabilitation ever since.”
“I’m sorry to hear that…” Arkay replied solemnly.
Jaydee though shrugged, clearly not at all bothered by his injuries. “I’m 81 years old, really, in the job I was working in, I’m surprised I made it that far. I get to retire, most D-Class end up dying on the job. Not like it’s bad here either.”
Arkay shrugged. “I guess. But there’s some things here you hate though, right?”
Jaydee sighed, then pointed at the electronic entertainment system. “My only problem is being so disconnected to the universe. The medics control what we watch, so we don’t get agitated and angry about not being able to do our jobs any more. I don’t mind, but the N- and L-Class guys hate it.”
“I’m too fucked up to care…”
“You drugged right now?” Jaydee asked.
“Yeah. I don’t think I’ve been sober since… hm… dunno. But I’m in constant pain otherwise. Better this than that.”
Jaydee reached over and put a reassuring hand on Arkay’s shoulder. “That’s fine. I don’t judge. Is there anything you want to watch right now?”
“Are there any electronic games?” Arkay pointed at a cupboard in the corner with a wire poking out of it. “I’d love to play some games.”
The young Ksa struggled to his feet and wobbled over to the corner, throwing the cupboard door open. After a few moments of rummaging, Arkay shrieked with joy, holding up a familiar-looking case.
Jaydee grinned as he got up to help Arkay sort out the controllers. “Sure, I’ll play Team Fortress 2 with you.”