"Only a few hours, Captain. The blow from the nightstand was not too bad, but the follow-up with the floor is what knocked you out." Knud answered, his voice sounded tired. "What happened, Eirik?"

"Sheer accident. Got tangled in the blanket, fell over" Eirik answered.

"Don't play stupid!" Knud snapped. "Your brain activity was literally off the charts, completely unreadable, and you have been bleeding continuously from the mouth, nose, and ears! Your heart rate was through the roof and don't even get me started on your blood pressure! You had another one of those *dreams*, right?" Knud was staring down at Eirik, his eyes shooting lightning and his presence crushing down on Eirik.

"So what if I did?" Eirik said defiantly.

"Eirik, I don't think you understand just how serious this is. Your body is going through the process of dying, only to stop at the threshold and hold you there. In all my years in medicine I have never seen, let alone heard about something like this. It's like watching someone die and them just pushing a *pause* button! Do you understand what I'm trying to tell you, or do I need to spell it out as if talking to a small child?" Knud was frustrated, which Eirik completely understood, but he was also scared, beneath all the anger. This, more than anything, worried Eirik. Nothing bothered Knud when it came to medicine and injury.

"What is your official recommendation?" Eirik asked after a moment.

Knud mumbled to himself for a few seconds before speaking up. "I have none. This is unknown territory and I do not have enough knowledge to suggest a course of action. I will have to rely on you keeping informed on your situation, as hopeless a task as that is." Knud sighed in exasperation, "How can you be so calm about almost dying, Eirik? Most people would be freaking out, begging me to figure out a solution. Not you. As long as I have known you, I never understood your casual relationship with death."

"Well, if it is any consolation, I can guarantee you that I will keep you informed of any changes in my body. As much as I hate being fuzzed over, I do understand the need to be safe. "Eirik answered as he felt around on his forehead to find the bump he suspected was there. "And what is death, other than the climax of life? We are all destined to die, Knud. From the moment we are born, that is the only true certainty in our lives. That is why I am so casual with death, I have accepted it as part of life." Eirik leaned back in the bed and smiled.

"When I die, I know where I am going, Knud. I am sanguine. The only reason I have to not seek death in battle is all the people around me, that I love and care for. If not for you, I would die on the battlefield soon enough."

Knud looked mortified as he replied, "You cannot be serious, Eirik. That sort of fatalistic mindset is borderline psychotic!"

"Never claimed to be normal," Eirik said with a wink.

"AAARRRGGGHHH" Knud vented his frustration through what could best be described as primal scream therapy. "If I had the authority you would be put in an artificial coma!!" He raged at Eirik who started laughing. He was one of the few people that knew how to piss Knud off.

"So I'm cleared to leave?" Eirik pushed his luck. When Knud stomped out of the room without a word, he took it as a yes.

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Eirik took a quick trip to his room to get some water on his face and change back into regular clothes. Knud always changed people into a hospital gown as soon as possible. When that was done, he made his way to the armory to suit up and talk to the other guys going with him. They were probably wondering about the reason to suit up for combat.

When he arrived, David and Jesper were already finishing up the last checks on the PESSA suits, moving towards the boxes with the mounted arm weapons.

"Not those! Today we use shields and melee weapons. The armor is more for show than for use anyway!" Eirik called out, stopping both men in their tracks. With a shrug, they changed target and moved to the lockers with the shields.

"We are going to need bigger axes and knives, Captain. The way we have rebuilt the siege armors in the PESSA suits makes them look comically small. I don't want to get laughed at!" Jesper said as they picked out their weapons.

"Suck it up until we reach Terra again. We do not have the materials, the tools, or the time to do anything about it at the moment" Eirik replied and moved over to the locker holding his weapons. He slotted the axe into place and grabbed the spear, finishing off by engaging the magnetic lock on his left arm that kept the shield in place.

They spent the next hour just talking shit and relaxing before they docked at Tetrachyon 3. Narvik entered at some point and Jesper delighted in going through the different weapons with him, pushing the boundaries of what Narvik understood as possible with every weapon he showed off.

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Tai'Tanu was watching the landing ship with mixed feelings. On one claw, she hated Terrans with a passion unequaled. On the other claw, having Terran mercenaries that held a grudge against Eirik, fight for her... That was an advantage she neither could nor would, turn away. Their leader, an elderly Terran walking with the confidence of a warrior and watching his surroundings like a predator on the hunt, came walking up to her. He reminded her of Eirik, only darker. More treacherous. As much as she detested Eirik, she had to respect his straightforward attitude.

This Terran reminded her of herself. Willing to do whatever was needed to keep your life and position. She did not like it.

"So." He said as he approached her, the guards around her gripping their weapons tighter, "You accepted my offer. I am delighted and honored to fight alongside a warrior of such great renown."

"Careful with this one. He is smooth" She warned herself. "Yes." She responded, "Even the greatest warrior needs backup from time to time." She decided to play along, hoping to lure him into a false sense of security in the knowledge that he had her fooled.

Dalle looked over the guards behind her, several of them carrying scars from the last clash with Eirik. "I see your guards are more resilient than rumored. That's good. We cannot have anything happen to a venerable member of the high caste." Dalle's voice was smooth as silk and his words were well chosen. He had big plans for the Kloxna. Together with the idiot Glorpil that saw him as a divine messenger, he would tear down Eirik's little empire and the dying giant that was the Terran Empire, and he would reinstate himself as the sole ruler of all.

"Save the flattery, we have things to discuss," Tai'Tanu said, gesturing for him to follow as she started walking towards her palace.

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Narvik had a hard time containing his curiosity, despite its morbid nature of it. The more he learned about the terrible power of the weapons of the prophets the more he wished to learn. All too soon, It was time for Eirik and the other to leave. Towering over Narvik, they gathered up in the hangar and Narvik had to admit they looked terrifying. taller than the largest Terran and much bulkier, the massive shields on their arm and the melee weapons strapped to their armor made him wonder if anything in the galaxy would have the capacity to so much as scratch the 9 men waiting to leave the ship.

As the ramp started lowering, Eirik started moving. He wanted to impress and you did not do that by standing still like a statue. It was time for him to finally present himself as the Emperor of Libertalia.