04-26-2023, 12:40 AM
The first thing Jensen noticed when they pulled up was that the hospital was lit up in that bright way they were always illuminated. The second thing he noticed was how he felt ridiculous walking through the halls in his suit and mask.
Once the elevator doors closed, Jensen turned to Agent Devarona. “Is this really necessary? I must be attracting more attention wearing it than I would in regular clothes,” he said with a gesture at his own masked face.
The agent nodded. “As we have discussed many times, Iásōn, the mask keeps you from being tagged by sensors. The CCD has worked very hard to make sure that your affiliation with your skills are secure.”
Jensen sighed. Agent Devarona continued to insist that the costume was necessary. Jensen understood, he truly did, but as he walked through the halls, he was glad they passed few people. He was quite self-conscious.
He was led to a unit that was sparsely populated with workers. A nurse looked up from behind a desk. Jensen glimpsed a wide range of metrics and other information about the many rooms under the nurse’s watch. The doors to each were sealed off for the night, and Jensen suddenly felt his own heart begin to pound. These were sick people fighting for their lives, and he finally felt like he was going to be able to do some good. The nurse looked up like they were expected and promptly looked away.
He could imagine the celebrations later. Everyone walking out on their own two legs, gowns swinging around their knees and everyone cheering. He smiled to himself, swiped his palms on the white tuxedo jacket, and followed Agent Devarona into the first room.
It was dim inside the room. The lights from many instruments blipped and flashed gentle little rhythms. Jensen had seen many similar layouts before, although this hospital was much nicer than anywhere he visited in the past. Agent Devarona stayed near the door. Jensen simply looked at the bed.
An older man lay there. He was middle aged, maybe in his 50’s. Sensors were connected to his body. Tubes and other equipment helped him breathe. He was in some kind of coma. Jensen did not glance at the agent as he directly moved to the side of the bed.
The Gift flowed through him.
An hour later, Jensen was joyous, and he barely felt tired.
No news was released from the miracle of that night, just the rumor floating through the hospital staff and all the survivors.
Back in the car, Jensen pulled the mask from his head as soon as the doors were closed. He was one enormous smile. Fifteen people cured of life-threatening diseases, accidents, injuries and suffering. There were tears in his eyes when he lay his head back in consideration of this enormous night.
“Thank you,” he said to the air above.
Once the elevator doors closed, Jensen turned to Agent Devarona. “Is this really necessary? I must be attracting more attention wearing it than I would in regular clothes,” he said with a gesture at his own masked face.
The agent nodded. “As we have discussed many times, Iásōn, the mask keeps you from being tagged by sensors. The CCD has worked very hard to make sure that your affiliation with your skills are secure.”
Jensen sighed. Agent Devarona continued to insist that the costume was necessary. Jensen understood, he truly did, but as he walked through the halls, he was glad they passed few people. He was quite self-conscious.
He was led to a unit that was sparsely populated with workers. A nurse looked up from behind a desk. Jensen glimpsed a wide range of metrics and other information about the many rooms under the nurse’s watch. The doors to each were sealed off for the night, and Jensen suddenly felt his own heart begin to pound. These were sick people fighting for their lives, and he finally felt like he was going to be able to do some good. The nurse looked up like they were expected and promptly looked away.
He could imagine the celebrations later. Everyone walking out on their own two legs, gowns swinging around their knees and everyone cheering. He smiled to himself, swiped his palms on the white tuxedo jacket, and followed Agent Devarona into the first room.
It was dim inside the room. The lights from many instruments blipped and flashed gentle little rhythms. Jensen had seen many similar layouts before, although this hospital was much nicer than anywhere he visited in the past. Agent Devarona stayed near the door. Jensen simply looked at the bed.
An older man lay there. He was middle aged, maybe in his 50’s. Sensors were connected to his body. Tubes and other equipment helped him breathe. He was in some kind of coma. Jensen did not glance at the agent as he directly moved to the side of the bed.
The Gift flowed through him.
An hour later, Jensen was joyous, and he barely felt tired.
No news was released from the miracle of that night, just the rumor floating through the hospital staff and all the survivors.
Back in the car, Jensen pulled the mask from his head as soon as the doors were closed. He was one enormous smile. Fifteen people cured of life-threatening diseases, accidents, injuries and suffering. There were tears in his eyes when he lay his head back in consideration of this enormous night.
“Thank you,” he said to the air above.