Print His movement triggered electronic calls to the white-suited technicians and both emerged from different locations at almost the same time.  The man raced to Harry’s side and pricked him with a needle again while the woman made silent notes on a clip-board. 

“Readings from bio-telemetry look normal, Bill.  Harry shows promise, even at this early stage.”

“Got it, Ariel.  I gave Harry here a sedative to relax him.  If the ESC is going to take, he needs to be quiet to give his body a chance to accept the zygote.”

“Roger that.”

Harry drifted into sleep again.  The new thoughts he experienced confused him, but only in the moment before the sedative gained traction and put him out.  A thought accompanied the last sensation: When I relax, the straps stop hurting.  I’ll stay relaxed when I wake up.  They didn’t need to put me to sleep, again.  I’m fine.

Then he slept once more.

 

Harry awoke to hear muffled voices from the other side of the wall, the content indistinguishable.  Low light levels revealed a different room from the one where he started his recent rest.  He rolled to one side and then the other.  No restraints.  His arms moved free.  Harry stretched like always, first with his arms and then with his legs. 

The back of his head felt sore, and a bandage covered the point of most intense pain.  He touched the tape and gauze and winced when he applied a little pressure.  The other headache disappeared while he slept.

He sat up and rotated to the edge of the bed, his legs crossed and stocking feet just reached the floor.  Harry’s hunger intensified.

On the other side of the wall he heard voices again.

“Ariel, patient’s awake.”

“’Bout time.  That sedative really knocked him out.”

“Going on two days.”

“We should feed him.  He’s gotta be totally empty by now, and the nutrition’ll help heal the incision.”

“I’ll call the commissary while you check on him.  Back in a moment.”

“Right.” 

Harry heard footsteps in the hall, a finger punched a code and then a lock released and the door opened.

“Harry, my boy, how’re you doing?”  The woman looked different to him this time, more interesting than before and he liked what he saw.  He noticed the sharp line of her jaw, the lively look in her brown eyes and a trim body somewhere in the lab garb.  Through the sharp aseptic smell that came in from the hallway with her he also detected a more pleasant aroma, a pheromone that aroused something deep inside. 

Harry tried to speak and flash a friendly greeting but nothing happened and his jaw went slack.  He sat in silence, stunned.

“Harry, can you hear me?”