Star Surgeon

er, inspecting her engine and fuel supplies, riding up the gantry crane to her entrance lock, and guiding the great cargo nets from the loading crane into her aft

PS

NC

f of his uniform, and lifted Fuzzy up on his shoulder to see. It seemed to Dal that everyone he had passed in the terminal h

"At first you think everybody is impressed by the colors, until you see some guy go past with the braid all faded and f

t turned the collar and cuff over to me." He looked suspiciously at Tiger. "You must have known a lot

ith you on my application, and then when yours was held up, Doctor Arnquist asked me if I'd be willing to wait

de it without his

ere assigned, it would be a good idea t

t," Dal said. "But who i

and therapy conference. He's supposed to be plenty smart, according to the grapevine. I guess he'd have to be, to pass Diagnostic

be in c

p crew. If we run into problems we can't agree on, we holler for help. But i

the ground, unloading three technicians and a Four-bar Electronics Engineer. Tiger and Dal rode the platform up again an

dy lodged on one of the bunks; one of the foot lockers was already occupied, and a small but

down his own duffel bag and looking around the cramped quart

've plenty to do before we take off. M

mputer rooms and the laboratory into the main control and observation room. Here they found a th

hough reluctant to tear himself away, the Blue Doctor sigh

nning to wonder if you wer

held out his hand. "Jack Alvarez? Tiger Martin. We m

them up very nicely since then. You'd have trouble finding fault with the work now." Jack Alvarez turned his

ad never seen this thin, dark-haired youth before, or even heard of him, but he recognized this sharp impression of hatred and anger unmistakably. He had felt it a thousan

have Dal for a Red Doctor," Tiger

f his head to the spindly legs in the ill-fitting trousers. Then the Blue Doctor shrugged in disgust and turned back t

do all right,"

better," Jack A

Tiger shrugged. "It's all right," he sai

for the bunk room. No doubt,

assignment on the Lancet was going to

ate for him, but there was no question in his mind that the Blue

ned for the moment by common consent. In the few days before blast-off there was no time for conflict, or even for much talk. Each

trip into wilderness country; once the Lancet left its home base on Hospital Earth it was a world to itself, equipped to support its physician-crew and provide the necessary equipment and data they would need to deal with the problems they would

ere to be made at various specified planets maintaining permanent clinic outposts of Hospital Earth; certain staple supplies were carried for each of these check points. Aside from

rs on the patrol ships were expected to be self-sufficient. Their job was to handle diagnosis and care of all but the most difficult problems t

as no set period of duty on the patrol ships; how long a young doctor remained in the General Practice Patrol depended to a large extent upon how well he handled the problems and responsibilities that faced him; and since the first years

the judgment to know how and when to use it can be downright dangerous. You'll be judged both on the judgment you use in deciding the right thing to do, and on the skill you use in doing it." He had given Dal the box with the coveted collar and cuff. "The colors are pretty, but never forget what they stand for. Until you can

was in the computer room, reviewing the thousands of tapes that carried the basic information about the contract planets where they would be visiting, and the

oom to divide the many extracurricular jo

mment. "Jack, you should be in charge of the computer," he said, "because you'll be the one who'll need the information first

ust as soon handle su

need to overload o

thing I need, I want to be sure it's going t

e it all rig

ut the contact man when we m

"His people are traders and bargainers; right, Dal? And first

om Hospital Earth. When somebody calls for help, they expect to see an Earthman turn u

ey'll be able to see his c

y wonder what he's

arn," Tiger snapped. "And you'

d. "I think Jack is right on this one," he said. "I

e better. We aren't going to have any ugly ducklings on this ship, and we aren't going to hide you in the hold every time we land on a plan

If we are walking into a medical problem on a planet where the patrol i

et on to these other things." But obviously he wasn't satisfied, and when Jack disappeared toward the storeroom, Tiger turne

ed. "I think he was right, that's all. Don't

ning. And later, as he tried to get to sleep, Dal wondered for a moment. Maybe Tiger was right. Maybe he w

embarkation orders for the Lancet came through. Preparations were compl

noring Jack Alvarez completely. "What's the normal range of serum cholesterol in a vegetarian race with Terran environment? How would you run a Wenberg electrophoresis? How do you determine individual radiation tolerance? How would you prepare a heart culture for cardiac transplant on board this ship?" The questions went on until Tiger and Dal were breathless, as count-down time grew closer and closer. Finally the Black Doctor turned back toward the entrance lock. He seemed vaguely disappointed as he

ehead and sighed. "That was no routine shakedown

aid. "You ran them in third year biochemistry. And if w

nd started back down the corridor as

plete control of the Lancet for the first two weeks of its cruise. Neither Tiger nor Jack challenged his com

ding ships that traveled to the far corners of the galaxy by means of a star-drive so similar to the Koenig engines that only an electronic engin

nuum, was far outside of normal human experience. The physical and emotional shock of the conversion hit Jack and Tiger like a sledge hammer, and during the long hours while the ship was traveling through the time-less, distance-less universe of the drive to the pre-set co-ordinates where it materialized again into conventional space-time, the Earthmen were retching violently, too sick

doctors aboard would hardly be able to stumble out of their bunks, much less to cope with medical problems. The outpost men had concocted a medical "crisis" of staggering proportions to present to the Lancet's crew; they were so clearly disappointed to find

into the joke. The outpost men plied Dal for the latest news from Hospital Earth. They were surprised to see a Garvian a

e sickness was hard to acquire, but lasted a lifetime, and would never again bother them once it was achieved. Bit by bit the E

ellation, others in closer to the densely star-populated center. At each outpost clinic the Lancet was welcomed with open arms. The outpost men were hungry for news from home, and happy to see fresh

once decimated the population; the disease had finally been controlled after a Hospital Earth research team had identified the organism that caused it, determined its molecular structure, and synthesized an antibiotic that could destroy it without dama

l girder. Dal spent over eighteen hours straight with the patient in the Lancet's surgery, carefully repairing the creature's damaged exoskeleton and grafti

leepless nights for a week, but Jack's careful study of the pattern of the disease and the biochemical reactions that accompanied it brought out the answer: the disease was caused by a rare form of genetic change which made crippling alterations in an essential enzyme system. Knowing this, Tiger quickly found a drug

welcome breaks in the pattern of patrol ship life. The Lancet was fully equipped, but her crew's quarters and living space were cramped. Under the best cond

ties to annoy him. The thin Blue Doctor's face set into an angry mold whenever Dal was around. He would get up and leave when Dal ente

did. "It's like living in an armed camp," he complained one night when Jack had stalked angril

w," Da

doing it o

t won't help to

's just deliberately picking at you and picking at you," he

Dal assured him. "

ft his attack to Fuzzy, Da

ll your friend there to turn the other way before I lose my temper and splatter him all over the wall,

eached up and stroked the tiny creature, and Fuzzy's shoe-button

n, and his face darkened suspiciously. "W

ppened t

eyes, yo

at Fuzzy. "I don

f pink fur. "Look, he's been blinking them at me for a week," he snarled. "I thought all along there was something funny about

"No cellular structure at all,

p. "Don't be silly," he said, curious in s

e. The only reason he has 'eyes' is because he thinks I want him

do you keep him around? What good does he do you

Dal said evasively. "He isn't

y. "Let's see him a minute." He reached out for Fuzzy, then jerk

y went white. "Wh

with anger. "He doesn't like you any more than I do, and you'll get bit e

d, "he won't get another chance

im alone and he won't bother you, that

et a warrant," Jack said tightly. "There are law

n, glaring at each other. Then the door burst open and Tiger Martin's head appeared. "Hey, you tw

ched tape running out on the floor. But as they crowded into the radio room, Dal felt Jack's hand on his arm. "If you