Empyrean Iris Story Collection
The sterile hum of the medical bay usually brought a sense of calm to Dr. Krill. His four independent limbs moved with practiced efficiency, his four cortical hemispheres processing data streams with unparalleled speed. Today, however, the silence was unsettling, punctuated only by the distant thrum of starships in orbit. A slow day, indeed, and Krill found himself floating aimlessly, sending memos to colleagues, a picture of methodical boredom.
Suddenly, the lights flashed a violent red. Radio signals, sharp and urgent, pulled at his lateral receptors. "Doctor, we have an emergency SOS from the USS Stabby requesting immediate medical assistance!" The words were unfamiliar, laced with an urgency that pierced Krill's usual composure. He spun, racing down the hallway, a tremor of unease stirring within his advanced biological systems.
"Species?" he demanded, his voice a series of precise clicks.
"Scans indicate it is a human freelance ship." The response was immediate, jarring. Krill nearly halted in his tracks, his internal processors struggling to reconcile the information. "Repeat?"
"Humans. I'm sending a biological map now." The signals shifted, and the image materialized in his lateral cortical zone: a bipedal endoskeleton, disturbingly carbon-based, powered by a single circulatory pump. An odd, fragile creature. He knew enough to perform emergency operations, but his certainty was shaken. The stories… surely they were exaggerated?
The roar of approaching engines ripped through the facility, shaking the very foundations. Sanctum's rings! They were impossibly loud. The main medical unit doors burst open, revealing three figures pushing a fourth in a wheeled chair. A burning red color painted the front of the fourth creature. Krill quickly activated his universal translator, the first human words washing over him: "It's gonna be alright, captain, you're going to be fine, just don't move your head."
