The Galaxy, and the Ground Within Becky Chambers (books to read to get smarter .txt) 📖

that, but I guess – I guess some things about xyr are still little.’

Captain Tem squeezed her hands around Ouloo’s legs. ‘Tell me about this thing. Is it … common? How does it work?’

‘It’s not common. I’ve never seen xyr do this before. It never happened to me. It’s – it’s only a – a last-ditch sort of thing.’

‘And what will happen? How long does it last?’

‘I – I’m not really sure. I know you’re supposed to go straight to a doctor if it happens, but other than that, I don’t know.’

The SoberUps were working fast, and the clearer his head became, the more Roveg found himself desperate to be of use. ‘Ouloo, do you know the remote access code for the reference file node in Tupo’s museum? I know the password, but—’ What was needed was a proper medical crew, but in lieu of that, they could at least know what they were dealing with.

‘Oh, um – yes, yes. It’s, um, 239-23-235-7.’

Roveg turned to the Aeluon. ‘Captain Tem, may I use your comms panel? I don’t have my scrib with me.’

‘You won’t be able to read it,’ she said.

‘You can use my scrib,’ Ouloo said. ‘It’s set to Piloom, but you can—’

‘Everybody, quiet,’ Speaker said. She set down the tool in her suit’s hands and bent the vox below her cockpit close to Tupo’s face. A breathing mask – that was what she’d attached to xyr. Speaker muttered something to herself as she made the suit pick up the air canister. The words were in her own language, and these, too, etched themselves into Roveg’s memory. The high-pitched sounds were unsettling to him, but he could feel an uncanny sort of kindness behind them. A plea, maybe. Perhaps a prayer.

No one in the room spoke as the air from the canister began to hiss, forcing itself forward into the mask. Tupo’s eyes remained shut. Xyr limbs remained motionless. But after a few seconds, the little Laru’s nostrils shot open, and xyr mouth gulped with a primal gasp. Xyr chest rose, and fell, and rose, and fell. The motion was painfully slow, and disturbing without any other hint of consciousness, but Tupo was breathing. Tupo was breathing, and in that moment, everybody present remembered how to do the same.

Feed source: Galactic Commons Reference Files – Local Access/Offline Version (Public/Klip)

Node path: 239-23-235-7

Node access password: Tup0IsGr3at

Selected file: Olotohen (medical reference)

Encryption: 0

Translation path: 0

Olotohen is a cryptobiotic state unique to prepubescent and preadolescent Laru children. This defensive reflex is triggered by extreme environmental danger (high or low temperatures, prolonged underwater submersion, oxygen deficiency, etc.), severe illness, or extreme mental/physical stress. When in olotohen, the patient’s internal functions almost entirely shut down. Breathing and heartbeat are impossible to perceive via physical examination, and may temporarily cease until the patient is placed in an ideal environment. Brain activity will appear minimal in standard imubot scans, and may flag a false positive for brain death.

A patient can safely remain in olotohen for up to eight GC standard hours without suffering any adverse affects beyond fatigue and increased thirst/appetite (these conditions typically dissipate within two to four days, depending on the patient). Beyond this point, the risk of brain and/or other organ damage increases exponentially. After thirteen hours, death is almost certain.

Patients who have entered olotohen must be given medical attention as quickly as possible. As this is an unconscious state, a patient may remain in olotohen even after the danger has passed. While xe may wake up on xyr own without intervention, this outcome cannot and should not be taken for granted. Always err on the side of caution with olotohen patients.

Patients who are in olotohen can be brought back to full consciousness and homeostasis by any medical professional who has completed a GC Medical Institute-certified training course in multispecies emergency medicine. This is a neurological procedure involving non-invasive imubot treatment, and takes about ten minutes to complete. This procedure should under no circumstances be attempted by those without certified medical training, as operator errors are likely to result in nerve or brain damage.

The GC Medical Institute recommends the following care for olotohen patients while awaiting professional medical help:

– Remove the patient from the dangerous/threatening environment.

– If the patient is wet, dry xyr fur. If water is present in xyr mouth, open xyr mouth and empty it as much as possible by gently tipping xyr neck in a vertical fashion with xyr head pointing toward the ground.

– If the patient was in an extremely cold or freezing environment, bundle xyr tightly with blankets, warm clothing, or any other insulating material.

– If the patient was in an extremely hot environment, cool the room to fifty GC standard degrees. Do not use blankets, clothing, etc.

– Provide clean, filtered air, if possible.

– Avoid an environment with harsh or bright lights, if possible.

– Avoid an environment with loud or sudden noises, if possible.

– Set up an ongoing imubot monitoring scan and watch closely for any of the following signs:

• sudden drop or cessation of heart rate, after heart rate has resumed

• sudden drop or cessation of brain activity, if brain activity has previously been detected

• hyperventilation or cessation of breath after normal breathing has resumed

If any of these signs occur in a situation in which a medical professional is not immediately available, place the patient in a medical stasis chamber, if possible. This should only be done as a last resort, as medical stasis can create serious complications in olotohen patients.

SPEAKER

As things stood, there were two good possibilities: Tupo could wake up before the eight-hour mark, or their signal could get through to emergency services. If neither of these came to pass, then they’d have no choice but to put Tupo in medical stasis, and then … then they’d have to see. There was no way to make the good possibilities happen, no way to know if they’d happen in five minutes or five hours or never. So the only option before them was to wait, without any idea of which reality they were waiting for.

Speaker stood