Less than an hour later, Iliana called Andrew, asking him to come to the med bay.
-How bad is it?
Andrew asked, seeing the grave expression on the doctor's and Tibrana's faces.
-It's very bad.
Ilia opened a holographic image of her patient's body.
-All the major organs are on the verge of failing, her immune system is shutting down, and there is nothing we can do to stop it.
At least nothing with our current technology.
The doctor said grimly.
-What would we need to cure her?
Andrew asked.
He understood that if their tech was insufficient, then there was always a possibility of acquiring a better technology or the cure directly.
-There are not many things that could cure her, especially since all this is caused by the instability of her genetic code.
The way things stand, she would need either a nanite regeneration injection or a new body and a full mind transfer, both of which we cannot provide.
Additionally, we don't have her original DNA, and her current one is way too unstable to clone her again.
Hearing this, Andrew was stunned as both these options required research, which they didn't even have access to yet.
-Is there a way to prolong her life?
He asked after thinking things through.
If they managed to survive their entry into the Battle-verse, then getting the technology or even just buying the nanite injection was only a matter of time.
-There are a few ways to make her last longer, but they can only buy her a few months at best, and it won't be pleasant for her.
In addition to that, we can always place her in cryo-sleep, which is the best option and would buy us a few years to deal with her problems.
-How long do I have without any treatment?
Tibrana asked.
-If we leave you untreated, you will die within a month, two if you are extremely lucky, and your death will not be pretty.
Either one of your vital organs will shut down completely, or you will get an infection when your immune system vanishes.
No matter what, it will be a painful death, and at that time, all I will be able to do is give you painkillers to ease the pain.
Ilia didn't hide anything from her.
-What about our regeneration tanks?
Andrew asked.
-They were able to treat me and Aelita, even before we got the better ones.
-The circumstances were different.
You both had injuries, and you were poisoned.
What we have here is a genetic problem stemming from her being cloned so many times that her DNA became unstable.
Even with the genetic alteration treatment, the tank won't detect that as abnormalities, so at most it will give her a week more to live, nothing more.
Iliana shook her head with resignation.
She hated that even with all this advanced medical technology, she could not save Tibrana.
Not like she was friends with her, but she had gotten used to saving people, even if they were on the brink of death, and now she was reminded once again that there were limits to what she could do.
-Basically, there is no way for me to become the Jiar empress, no matter what I decide to do.
Tibrana sighed.
-Dummy, you can't get married if you're dead.
Ilia scolded her.
-What's with this obsession of yours anyway?
As far as I can tell, the Jiar are not that compatible with humans anyway, not to mention every human I asked said that they were not that great to look at.
Yet here you are, grieving a marriage that will not happen with a being whose ancestors most likely abducted your original, and when she died, they made a clone.
-Calm down, there is a reason for all of that.
Tibrana said, a bit surprised at Iliana's outburst.
-The Jiar people never had a great immune system, so when they found humans by accident, and learned that they had powerful immune systems, they took one in hopes of replicating it.
Then it turned out that there was a possibility of having an offspring with humans, while duplicating the protection was almost impossible.
So the woman married the emperor and gave him many children.
These children inherited her immune system. Unfortunately, within three generations, their inheritance started to disappear.
At that time, it was decided that it was easier to clone the human woman than to go and abduct another one.
It was also at that time that they discovered that the blood of the human and Jiar descendants can be transferred to anyone, giving them the same immune system.
That's why it became tradition in the Jiar world that every clone would become empress and bear the next generation of the royal family, allowing the whole race to benefit.
Tibrana explained.
-How does that work?
Even if you had twenty or more children, there is no way that they would be able to provide enough blood for the whole population.
-They can, all it takes is a drop or two of blood to activate the immune system in Jiar people.
Don't ask me how it works, I just know it does.
Additionally, one dose is enough to last them for their whole lives, so they receive the blood as soon as they are born.
Tibrana explained.
As for my attachment to the role of empress, it's mostly because I was told all my life that this was my destiny.
As for the Jiar looks, you might want to remember that I was raised among them, so for me, their looks are normal.
-It's a fascinating topic, ladies, but we got sidetracked a bit.
Andrew chimed in.
-Tibrana, you need to make a decision.
You either live out the remainder of the time you have on earth, which, if you ask me, is not the best available option.
Andrew said with a neutral expression.
-The second one is that you go back, but that's a death sentence, as you said earlier.
Or we can put you on ice and wait for our technology to reach a level when we will be able to cure you, which by the way will most likely take a few months or maybe even years.
Or if you have any other options, I'm all ears.
Andrew finished, allowing the silence to stretch as the clone was deciding her fate.
-Actually, there is another option I considered.
Iliana broke the silence, getting their attention.
-I haven't mentioned it because the chances of success are minimal, and even if it's triggered, there is no way to know if it would help, and I'm pretty sure that the two of you won't agree to it.
The doctor explained.
Andrew connected the dots pretty quickly.
-You can't be serious.
He gasped when he finally understood what she was thinking about.
-What are you talking about?
Tibrana asked, confused.
-She is talking about triggering your evolution.
Andrew explained, and his tone indicated that he was not too happy, even considering it.
-What would that take?
And why would I not want to agree to it if it can help me?
-We don't know if it can even help you, and as far as we were able to determine, triggering the evolution is random, so there is no guarantee that it would even work.
As for what it takes?
Ilia blushed a bit.
-Well, out with it.
Tibrana was losing her patience.
-You would need to have sex with Andrew.
It's the only way that we know of that can trigger the evolution.
But like I said, it's random, so there is no guarantee that it will work.
Tibrana's eyes widened in shock.
This was not something she expected to hear or even considered as a possibility.
-No way, this is unacceptable.
She declined immediately.
-That's why I didn't bring it up until now.
I was certain that the two of you wouldn't agree to it.
Iliana sighed.
-With that said, you have the remaining three options to choose from.
Andrew said, relieved that she was also not interested in trying it out.
-If I agree to stay here and go to the cryo sleep, what are my chances of being healed?
Tibrana asked.
-I'm 100% sure that the nanite injection will cure you and repair your genetics, so if we manage to survive the battle-verse, then you should be out of cryo within a few months.
Additionally, at that time we should be able to clone a new body and have the technology to transfer your consciousness to it, so if everything other fails, you will still have a way to survive and be healthy.
The doctor explained.
-Alright, I'll agree to that, but before I go to sleep, there are a few things I have to do.