Chapter Three: Where Am I?
The Eagle Riders and Dr. Aikens are the property of Saban, Dr. Brighthead belongs to Turner, credit(?) for his name goes entirely to Fred Ladd.
Mobile Undersea Base, Headquarters of the Eagle Riders
The Eagle and the Condor placed the gurney gently on the ground. Brighthead looked around the unfamiliar hanger - definitely not Crescent Base - and at the ship that had brought him there. Long and thin with backswept, almost vestigal wings and - he blinked disbelievingly.
*Is that a birdface?* Brighthead squeezed his eyes shut, looked again. It was still there; a snarling Eagle or perhaps Phoenix head on the prow. The dulled ache in shoulder and knee told him he'd been given a painkiller - perhaps the girl who wasn't Aggie had made a mistake in the dosage?
Kelly intercepted Aikens, blurted out an abridged but alarming account of the rescue. "I'm so afraid it's teleport dementia!" she finished, "Oh, Doctor, what if he doesn't get better?"
Francine Aikens covered her own apprehension with briskness. "Let's not jump to conclusions, Kelly, there are other possibilities. And even if it is TD that doesn't necessarily make his condition hopeless."
Dr. Keane looked terrible; his coat, vest and tie were gone and his shirt had been ripped open revealing a black and blue, obviously dislocated shoulder. His left left trouser leg had been slit uncovering an equally swollen and discolored knee.
The brown eyes met hers calmly, but without any sign of recognition, in a long cool, dissecting gaze that seemed oddly familiar. Abruptly she remembered; Brighthead'd given her exactly the same look at their first meeting, she winced inwardly remembering the circumstances.
Hunter, Joe, Ollie and Mickey huddled nearby, looking considerably worse than the Doctor. Dispite his injuries and whatever delusions he harboured he was his usual, calm controlled self. The same could not be said for the Eagle Riders.
Hunter looked like death in a birdstyle, drawn face tinged with gray, hands tightly clenched. Joe wore his darkest glower, one foot stabbing restlessly at the deck. Kelly, red eyed, had an arm around Mickey who clung to her like the child he almost was. Ollie looked sick to his stomach, shoulders slumped, head hanging.
Aikens pulled her attention back to Keane. "Good to have you back, Doctor, how are you feeling."
The cool gaze didn't waver. "And you are?"
"Francine Aikens." she heard herself reply, reeling with shock and a sudden, incongruous hope. "Your special assistant."
"I see." was all he said. The medical team came up and he transferred his dispassionate scrutiny to them.
The medics were visibly shaken by his condition, none of them'd ever seen Dr. Keane with so much as a hair out of place before. Aikens delegated two to look after the Eagle Riders. She could see the bruising on Hunter's face even through his visor, and she didn't like the way Kelly held her arm tight to her side. Was that a glint of concern from the Doctor? Definitely! Hope grew stronger.
The medical examination was difficult for them both. An intensely private man Keane would have hated being undressed and handled by relative strangers under any circumstances. If he truly believed himself in enemy hands....Aikens shivered, pushed the thought away, she didn't have to imagine what he was feeling.
She carefully explained her intentions before each proceedure, hoping to reassure him at least a little. He spoke only once; a flat 'No.' in response to her offer of anesthesia, then kept his eyes closed, shutting them out.
Finally it was over. Bathed, bandaged and dressed in clean pajamas the Doctor was transferred to a recovery room and strapped to the bed.
Aikens touched his good shoulder, he opened his eyes with a visible start as if he'd been dozing or on the verge. Another good sign she decided. Subconsciously he knew he was safe even if his conscious mind refused to acknowledge it.
*He must be exhausted, thirty hours in enemy hands, and God knows how long he'd been up before then.* "I'll let you get some rest now, Doctor." she said, hesitated considering the restraints. "Those can't be very comfortable" she continued impulsively, "If you would give me your word not to try to escape or interfere with the functioning of this HQ-"
"No." he interupted flatly. "I'm not making any promises - until I'm quite sure who or what I'm making them to."
Good. He was no longer convinced they were the enemy. Years ago he'd told her 'The best way to get trust is to give it.' She decided to take his advice. "Okay, no promises." she agreed and touched the release the restraints snapped back into the bed. "Good night, Doctor. I'll see you in the morning."
"I'm not sure that was a good idea, Doctor." Hunter said seriously. He was sporting a truly spectacular black eye, blue and purple bruising covering half his face.
"I hate to say it but Fearless Leader has a point." said Joe, "Doc makes a pretty dangerous enemy."
"We're never going to get him to trust us if we keep treating him like a prisoner." Aikens argued.
"He hasn't done anything." said Kelly, eyes on the security monitor, her right arm in a sling. "I think he's asleep."
"I hope so, sleep deprivation could be a big part of the problem."
Kelly turned to the other woman hopefully. "Then you don't think it's TD?"
Aikens shook her head, "Can't be, he's as rational and controlled as he ever was -"
"He just thinks we're the enemy." Joe interupted bitterly.
"He's not so sure of that anymore." Aikens responded, sat down on a nearby couch. "Dr. Keane recognized Ollie and Mickey at once, he didn't begin to doubt you until after he'd seen the new weapons, and he doesn't recgonize me or HQ." she took a breath, she could be raising false hopes but - "I think we're dealing with a kind of self induced amnesia. The Doctor has deliberately blocked out years of his memory to protect himself against Mallanox's interrogators."
"I've heard of that." Hunter said doubtfully.
"But does Doc have the training to do it?" Joe demanded bluntly.
"Yes he does." Aikens replied, "I've seen him use the technique before." To her relief they didn't ask when or where.
Instead the Eagle Riders exchanged richly communicative looks but only Mickey dared say it aloud. "Then he'll be all right?"
"He needs rest." Aikens smiled comfortingly at the youngest Eagle Rider. "And so do you lot. Everything will look better after a good nights sleep."
Brighthead frowned at the ceiling. He'd actually fallen asleep, or the next thing to it, while they were still working on him. *Do I feel that safe?* Yes he did, which meant either his instincts were shot to Hell after fifteen years behind a desk - or he should start listening to them.
*Point one; I shouldn't have lasted ten seconds, much less ten minutes against any kind of adequate opposition, not unarmed and outnumbered five to one! Unles they were pulling their punches, trying not to hurt me....*
He grimaced, he hadn't been holding back, might have managed to inflict some real damage. *I should have realized....* yet the same instincts that said he was in friendly hands insisted these people were not his Team. *Everything's wrong! their weapons, that ship, this HQ, even their names...especially their names! And who in hell is this Dr. Aikens? She doesn't even look like Tracey Crabb!* He turned over, careful of his shoulder.
*Forget it, get some sleep. Maybe things'll be clearer in the morning.*
The faintest possible whisper; "Doctor?
Brighthead opened his eyes, saw Peewee and Hooty, or whoever they were, peering around the door at him.
"Are you awake?" the younger boy asked a little louder.
"I am now." Brighthead answered. "Come in."
They did, closing the door gently behind them.
"Told you we'd wake him." the Owl muttered.
The Swallow ignored him. "Are you feeling better, Doc?"
"Yes," he admitted cautiously, "but confused." A massive understatement!
"Dr. Aikens says you've given yourself amnesia so Mallanox couldn't get information out of you." The youngster told him, coming closer to the bed.
"That - sounds possible." Brighthead conceeded. *Doesn't explain the changed names...* "Would Mallanox be the tall, yellow haired creature, none to quick on the uptake?"
Both boys grinned, seemed to relax a little.
"That's her." said the Owl.
"Or maybe him," shrugged the Swallow, "we're not real sure."
"Whichever," the Owl echoed his shrug. "he or she is the new leader of the Vorak."
*Vorak?*
One thing about being a cyborg you don't need a lot of sleep. Sometimes that's an advantage, this was not one of those times. Joe paced the floor of his cabin frowning darkly, remembering his own ordeal at Lukan's hands. If Doc feared he was facing anything even remotely like that...Aikens' gesture should have reassured him a little but - *If it was me I'd still try to escape, just to be safe....* And if the Doctor did make a try - the shape he was in he could do himself real harm. Changing course abruptly Joe left his quarters headed for Medical.
He pushed the Doctor's door open gently. His guardian was awake, glasses on, surveyed him calmly. "Ah, Joe, join the party."
"Party?" he echoed, stared as Mickey and Ollie wriggled out from under Doc's bed.
Mickey gave him a cheeky grin. "Great minds think alike."
"Close the door." the Doctor advised gently.
Joe did. "What goes on here?"
"Ollie and Mickey have be filling me in on the history of the last few years." Doc continued. "Very instructive, I apologize for my android remark."
"You weren't far off." Joe replied, lowering himself into the bedside chair.
"An android is a machine." the Doctor corrected sternly, "A cyborg is a Human Being with augmentations. A considerable difference."
Joe smiled a little. That'd been Doc's line from the begining, what's a little solid state circuitry between family? Joe himself couldn't quite accept that point of view, couldn't help feeling he'd lost part of his humanity but appreciated the attitude. He looked at his Teamates. "I thought we were supposed to let Doc rest?"
Mickey, curled at the foot of the Doctor's bed, made a face at him. "So what're you doing here?"
"Checking up." Joe admitted, added to the Doctor, "I was afraid you'd hurt yourself trying to escape."
"As you can see I'm very well guarded." Doc returned equably.
Joe's head turned sharply as his cyborg hearing caught footsteps far down the corridor outside. "Somebody coming!"
The Eagle Riders made themselves air into which they vanished. Doc took off his glasses and pretended to sleep.
The door opened a cautious crack, a blue eye and a green peeked around it.
"S'okay, it's just Hunter and Kelly." Ollie announced, emerging from the wall locker.
The door escaped Hunter's grasp and swung wide as he and Kelly gaped at their materializing Teamates.
"Please come in." said the Doctor politely, reaching for his glasses.
"Yeah, join the party," Joe grinned from the shadows behind the bedside chair.
"And close that door!" ordered Mickey, once again slithering from under the bed.
Hunter and Kelly closed their mouths and came in, Kelly shutting the door carefully behind them.
"What are you all doing here?" Hunter demanded authoritatively.
"Said the pot to the kettle." Ollie grunted, perching on the bedside table.
"Same thing you are," Mickey continued resuming his place on the bed.
"Checking up on Doc." finished Joe from the chair.
The Doctor took in Hunter's black eye and the sling on Kelly's arm, said gently, "I apologize for my behavior at the base, I wasn't thinking clearly."
Joe snorted. "Who would be after thirty hours of Mallanox's nattering!"
Hunter shook his head. "My fault, I should have known better than to jump you."
"Especially after seeing the fight you put up against the Vorak!" Mickey cut in.
"I should have tried talking first." the Commander finished.
"No guarantee I'd have listened." the Doctor replied, "The charges were set and you were running out of time."
Hunter: "I didn't use good judgement."
Joe, softly: "Hunter."
His commander glanced at him, "Yeah?"
"Repeat after me; 'It's not my fault!'"
Hunter snorted with reluctant laughter. Kelly grinned.
Joe persisted, "Say it!"
"'It's not my fault'" Hunter recited, trying to look daggers at his Number Two but a grin kept slipping out, ruining the effect.
"Again! with feeling!" Joe and Kelly chorused.
Hunter raised his hands in surrender, "Okay, okay, point taken!"
"Why do I feel I'm missing something?" the Doctor mused.
"Yeah," Ollie agreed, "what gives?"
"Just giving Fearless Leader a dose of his own medicine." Joe replied.
Brighthead looked ruefully at the Eagle Riders. They were nearly euphoric at finding their mentor apparently back to normal. He hated to bring them down but sooner or later he was going to have to...he needed their help, and so did their real guardian. *Wonder how he's getting along with Gallactor?* Brighthead could only hope his Team had been as expeditious in rescuing Keane as the Eagle Riders had him, and that his alternate had been a bit quicker on the uptake and not tried to fight them off.
Abruptly the door opened. Dr. Aikens switched on the lights. The Team froze defensively but she ignored them, attention fixed on Brighthead.
*Uh oh, looks like I'm found out.*
Aikens' brushed by Hunter and Kelly on her way to the bed, Ollie scrambled hastily out of her way as she stopped, frowned down at the Doctor. Suddenly she slipped her hand under his head running questing fingers through his hair, feeling the back of his skull. Startled, Brighthead pulled away.
She straightened, said flatly. "You're not Dr. Keane."
"I never claimed I was." he replied calmly.
"What do you mean, Doctor?" Hunter demanded of Aikens
"What the hell do you mean?" Joe asked Brighthead aggressively.
Aikens, in a tone of flat shock: "He doesn't have Dr. Keane's bullet scar."
Brighthead: "What bullet scar?"
"Where I shot him." she replied, sat abruptly on the edge of the bed as if her knees had given way.
Brighthead, eyes widening: "*You* shot him?"
Aikens blushed. "It was necessary, to protect him."
Brighthead, incredulous: "You shot Keane in the head to protect him?"
Aikens, beat red and uncomfortable: "It's a long story."
"I'll bet." Brighthead shook his head, "My alternate must have a singularly forgiving nature."
Joe, frustrated: "What the hell are you two talking about?"
"If this isn't Dr. Keane then who is he?" Kelly demanded.
"Benjamin Brighthead." the Doctor replied.
The Eagle Riders in ragged unison: "Who?"
Hunter, in patient Commander mode: "Let's take it from the top. Dr. Aikens, you say this can't be Dr. Keane because he doesn't have your bullet scar?"
"Exactly."
To Brighthead: "And you're saying she's right?"
The Doctor, simply: "Yes."
Mickey, bewildered: "Then who are you?"
"My name is Benjamin Brighthead." he said gently, "I'm an alternate of your Dr. Keane from a parallel universe."
"You expect us to buy that?" Joe snapped.
Aikens said: "Joe, he's got the same retinal patterns and the same fingerprints as well as identical DNA. Not even a clone would be that close a match. An alternate, unlikely as it sounds, is the only explanation that makes any sense."
"When you've eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable must be the truth." Brighthead quoted, smiling.
"But how would an alternate from a parallel universe get *here?* Kelly wanted to know.
Aikens frowned. "The Teleport?" she asked Brighthead. He nodded and she continued musingly, "If Cybercon overpowered the beam he'd break through the four dimensions into the fifth -"
"And if Computor had made the same error and happened to be 'porting me at the identical moment -" he prompted.
"It would result in an exchange." Aikens finished. "Unbelievable!"
Kelly nodded as if she was following but Hunter was still struggling with the concept:
"So our Doctor is in your universe?" he asked.
"Logically he must be." Brighthead replied.
"How'd we get him back?" Joe demanded, straight to the point as usual.
"Joe! don't shout at Dr. Brighthead," Kelly said sharply, "It isn't his fault!"
"I didn't say it was," Joe snarled, "and I'm not shouting damn it!"
"The first step is to locate the interdimensional rift." Brighthead interposed, trying to impose calm by his own composure.
Joe; "Great, how do we do that?"
"Dr. Keane's exit point would be a good place to start." the Doctor replied.
Aikens', kindling: "Of course! there must be two breaches in the dimensional fabric, Dr. Keane's exit point and Dr. Brighthead's entry point!"
"And since the latter is now buried under several hundreds of tons of rock -" Brighthead continued.
"The Eyrie is the most accessible." Hunter finished. Added explanatorially, "That's Doc's country place."
Brighthead smiled. "I know, we call ours the Eyrie too."
Mickey, bouncing off the bed: "Let's go!"
Aikens, firmly: "No, Dr. Brighthead is still my patient and he needs at least another ten hours sleep, so do the rest of you."
Brighthead cut through the Teams' protests: "Doctor, time may be of the essence, the rift will be closing."
Kelly, alarmed: "He's right!"
Hunter, sharply: "What?"
Joe: "Oh shit!"
Mickey: "Then we've got to go now!"
Ollie: "Yeah, be reasonable, Doc!"
"No!" Aikens shouted above them all. "I'll send an investigative team to the Eyrie to study the situation but we are staying right here until I say you are fit for duty! Understood?"
Resentful, glowering silence.
Brighthead to Hunter: "Is she always this assertive?"
Hunter, resignedly: "Oh yeah."