Intensive CareC
ommander Kanh, Chief Mason, the Diving Medical Officer, and a couple of people in uniform that I don’t recognize are all gathered in the surgical ward waiting room when I arrive. No one notices me at first. They are staring at a pair of double doors where a man who must be the attending, given his surgical scrubs and weary expression, is just pushing his way through to brief the crowd. The CO gives me a nod when I join the little circle and holds up a finger for me to wait with my report until he hears from the surgeon.
“I assure you all we did everything we could,” he says. “But there was just too much damage to bone and muscle both. We had to amputate the lower part of his left leg—but I think we managed to save the knee. He’s in terrific physical shape, so there should
