8 - Hoping for a Swift Recovery

New Hope Hospital, Elarion Prime

New Hope Hospital B ward internal footage. 4000.04.03 22:24 UniTi

Dravik laid still, almost too still. None of his tentacles moved and... he looked very dead.

"Uh, Dravik?" Zev asked, worried the bots unfamiliarity with his Manipulator physiology may have lead to disaster.

"Yes, Captain?" a calm, sedate voice responds though Dravik doesn't open his eyes.

"Just checking in on you... Firstly, I wanted to say that was some mighty fine shooting, you holding down the right side of the field allowed us to focus down the rest of their group. You earned a commendation there today Dravik."

"A... commendation?" Dravik opens his inky black eyes and Zev has to fight the unnerving feeling that comes from his sort-of-human-but-definitely-not friend's gaze.

"Sure, a commendation of the Riftrunner company - that's us!" Zev says with a laugh and a smile, trying to lighten the mood.

Dravik sits up, "Is it worth credits? Will I be on the holonews?" Dravik asks, a hint of worry in his voice.

Zev chuckles, "Stars no, a Riftrunner tradition I just started."

Dravik shrugs? Or was that a Manipulator eyebrow raise? Zev isn't sure but just rolls with it.

"For repeated bravery in battle and often holding a side of the battlefield on your own I bequeath upon you the Lockdown badge, on accounts of you LOCKING DOWN our enemies!" He produces a handcrafted circular pin depicting a lock and gently attaches it to Dravik's hospital gown.

"Uhm, thank you... Captain... I am... barely filled with honor." Dravik says, something going wonky with the translator but Zev takes it as a compliment.

"So, uh, seems like you lost a tentacle and a half in that battle - how are you doing?"

"They will grow back," Dravik says, non-plussed.

"Well, about that. We were calling in our medical benefits anyway, so I had them heal 'em up for you. They had some sort of accelerant."

Dravik, still sedate, looks at his tentacles and seems surprised to find them all in one piece, "But... why? They would have grown back on their own."

"We need you Dravik, you're a part of the crew and that's all they 'why' I need to know. Now you rest up, you hear? We've got some leads coming in for some big jobs."

Dravik inclines his head in the human fashion, "Understood and... thank you Captain."

*     *     *

Next, Zev goes to check on Juniper, but she's sound asleep so he leaves her be. They couldn't save her shoulder but using the health insurance benefits the Governor had promised, Zev was able to get her an even better shoulder to replace it - one of those upper tier robotic ones, he hopes she'll like it when she wakes up...