Филип Керр - The Second Angel

‘Ten percent,’ he noted.

Ronica kept her eyes on the crimson snake beside her bare arm.

‘How do you feel?’

Taking a deep breath, she glanced over at the computer readings and then closed her eyes. ‘A little faint,’ she admitted.

Still the pump kept on sucking the blood out of her.

‘Fifteen percent,’ said Dallas. ‘Systolic and diastolic pressures falling now.’ He picked up her wrist and checked the pulse pressure. Her skin felt cold and clammy to his touch.

Ronica took a deep breath and swallowed nervously. ‘Where do you get these good ideas, Dallas?’ she asked.

‘They just come to me, through the ether, at the speed of light.’

‘That can’t be true,’ she said, eyelids flickering. ‘No signals carrying information can travel faster than light.’

‘Twenty percent.’

‘Not feeling so good now. Nauseous. Must be something I ate.’

‘I hope she doesn’t vomit,’ said Simou, unfolding a plastic bag. ‘Smells bad enough in here already.’

‘Maybe you’d like to volunteer for this instead,’ said Lenina.

‘Not me. I’ve got a puncture to mend, remember?’

‘Then shut up.’

‘Twenty-five percent,’ said Dallas.

Ronica retched again.

‘You’d better start talking to Descartes,’ Dallas told Gates. ‘Another few minutes and she’ll be in hemorrhagic shock.’

Gates was already positioned close to the radio. He flicked on a switch to open a channel.

‘Descartes, this is Mariner.’

‘I’ve been trying to contact you, Mariner,’ said Descartes. ‘What is your status, please?’

‘I can confirm that we were probably struck by a tiny meteorite,’ said Gates. ‘It penetrated the ship’s hull, causing a slow decompression on the flight deck. Until we can make repairs, that area’s sealed off. So there’s no immediate danger of asphyxiation.’

‘I’m glad to hear that, Mariner.’

‘In a while, a couple of my crew will go EVA and fix the hole with the UHT electron-beam welder. [117] Electron-beam welding was perfected in the Ukraine, during the late twentieth century and used on the Russian space program. Electrons are boiled off from a heated filament, accelerated, and then focused onto the target metal or rock. When the electrons collide with the atoms in the subject material, their kinetic energy is converted to heat energy. However, any gas will disrupt the beam, causing dangerous arcing between tool and surface. This makes the tool ideal for work in the vacuum of space. However, right now, I have a more immediate problem on my hands. One of my female crew has been injured. It would seem the meteorite struck her, like a bullet. There’s no damage to any of her vital organs, but she’s lost an awful lot of blood. Since we’re going to be here for several hours I’d like to request some RES Class One whole blood component, in order to carry out an infusion.’

‘This isn’t a clearing bank, Mariner,’ explained Descartes. ‘It’s a federal reserve. This bank exists to guarantee other blood banks on Earth. People don’t make deposits. Nor are they withdrawn. Blood supplies are sold in order to help the government balance its books and meet its borrowing commitments. When times are good it will buy supplies to meet any future borrowing requirements. That’s the way it works here. And besides, the blood here is deep-frozen. You would have to thaw it first.’

‘Thirty percent,’ announced Dallas. ‘She’s going into shock.’

‘I’m well aware of all that, Descartes,’ Gates told the computer. ‘I’m also aware of what it says in the International Convention of World Blood Banks. That’s the convention that exists to protect all autologous donors in emergencies. According to section fourteen, paragraph ten, and I quote, “Provided authorized autologous donation codes are given, all banks, regardless of their hematological charter, are obliged to provide autologous donors with the necessary components in an emergency.” End quote. You can leave the preparation to us.’

‘You’re very well informed,’ said Descartes. ‘However, I must insist on conducting my own patient evaluation. Are your crew member’s vital signs being monitored by a computer, Mariner ?’

‘Affirmative, Descartes. Anticipating your compliance with section fourteen, paragraph ten, and to save time, she’s already been hooked up to a trans-infusion pump. I’m sending you her vitals, now.’ Gates flicked a switch on the communications panel, and then covered the microphone with the palm of his hand.

‘Let’s hope Descartes goes for it,’ he told Dallas. ‘How’s she doing?’

Ronica looked pale and feverish. The rest of the crew watched her with a concern that was only partly due to her physical condition: If the Descartes computer considered her phlebotomy was not urgent, they were stalled.

‘Her body temperature’s way down,’ said Dallas, reading what appeared on the computer screen. ‘And she’s showing signs of tachycardia and insufficient tissue perfusion.’

‘From the data you’ve sent me,’ said Descartes, ‘it would seem that she’s still losing blood. I can hardly organize you a specific delivery of component until I know how much she will need. To do that you will first need to stabilize her condition.’

Dallas winced and switched off the pump. He should have thought of that. He waited a minute until the trans-infusion computer had had sufficient time to register that no more blood was being drawn, and then nodded at Gates.

‘Descartes? I think we’ve managed to stabilize her now,’ reported Gates. ‘Sending you new data to confirm that.’ He paused for a moment. ‘Do you copy?’

‘Affirmative, Mariner. According to the data you have sent me, she requires fourteen hundred and thirty-two milliliters of blood, type O, genotype OO, phenotype O, showing H-substance red-cell antigens, and all normal plasma antibodies. Please provide me with your crew member’s autologous donor validation code, now.’

Gates picked up Ronica’s hand and read the tag she always wore around her wrist.

‘O-L-O-I/ 0.45. 1.80. 0.75. 0.75.’

‘Password?’

‘Mizpah.’

‘Confirmed,’ said Descartes. ‘Three units have been debited from your crew member’s deposit account. The cryoprecipitate will be with you presently. Please await further instructions for its retrieval.’

‘Thanks,’ said Gates, and closing the communications channel, he immediately put the trans-infusion machine into reverse, pumping the blood that had been removed straight back into Ronica’s body.

It wasn’t blood he wanted from the First National’s vault right now, it was the electric car that delivered it.

A small cylindrical airlock provided access between the mid-deck section and the payload bay. Swallowing a dysbaric pill, a quick chemical means of purging the bloodstream of all nitrogen (previously astronauts undertaking EVA were required to breathe pure oxygen for three hours to prevent dysbarism), Dallas and Gates entered the airlock, closed the door to mid-deck behind them, and climbed into their EVA space suits. These were bulkier than the pressurized suits worn during ascent and descent and provided enough power and oxygen for extra-vehicular activity for upward of sixteen hours. Dallas figured they might need every minute of that time, although he knew there were replacement supplies to be found inside the main facility.

As soon as they were secure in their suits, they pumped out the airlock and then went through the door that led into the open payload bay. Then they closed the airlock door behind them and repressurized the compartment so that Simou and Prevezer could follow.