Massive Fever

        Knee was finding it hard to concentrate. He had been working long hours clearing the asteroid belts of Gurista presence so the mining fleet could have a safe operation. Everything on the ship's instruments indicated things were working perfectly, but the mental effort to drive the ship and its subsystems seemed a bit more taxing than usual. The pod diagnostics were showing a biometric anomaly, but heartbeat and respiration were normal. Still, Knee took it as a sign to check in to headquarters. After delivering a mortal shot to the last Gurista battleship in the belt, he recalled his drones and headed for the station.

        The docking procedure was normal. As soon as Knee pulled himself out of stasis and back into consciousness, it hit him. A migraine headache. Nausea. Fatigue. Disoriented, coughing, and in a slight panic, Knee stumbled his way to Medical.

        "Is this your natural body?" The doctor asked.

        "Unfortunately not. I lost that one a long time ago." Knee grimaced as he recalled the thundering force of projectile ammo rendering his first pod asunder. The sound alone would have deafened him if he had survived the incident.

        "Have you consumed any performance-enhancing drugs lately?"

        "No, never have." Knee was trained in Biology and knew about the so-called combat booster drugs that improved capsuleers' performance with the possibility of crippling side effects. He had not yet faced a situation that would require the risk.

        "Well, here's what I see. You have a massive fever, you're congested, you're malnourished, and your muscles have begun to atrophy from non-use."

        "Meaning what?"

        "Well, aside from being in that pod for too damn long, you've gotten yourself sick as well."

        "Sick? How?"

        "All the standard ways diseases are transmitted. Aspiration, ingestion, physical contact, etcetera. The problem is that when you're in pod stasis there's no way to control the germ. The system is shut down almost to the point of death, with just heartbeat and respiration keeping the brain alive. With the immune system suppressed to the point of non-existence, a contracted infection has essentially free reign in the body and you wouldn't even know it."

        Knee gripped his aching head. "Lovely. What can you do?"

        "The only option is to get some rest. Some real food and some light exercise would do you some good as well. I don't like the things I'm seeing from you staying in that pod so long. It's destroying your body."

        Knee chuckled to himself. He laughed louder as he looked up and met the doctor's questioning gaze. The doctor shook his head. "I don't --"

        "Destroying the body!" Knee exclaimed between fits of laughter. He calmed down and looked at the doctor with a giddy grin on his face. "Doc, if I biomass this clone, I take out the infection with it, correct?"

        The doctor nodded. "Correct."

        "I'd rather not resort to that since I have some pricey implants in here." Knee tapped his cranium. "Now, what happens if I clone jump instead?"

        The doctor recited, "Well, your consciousness transfers to the clone in reserve at a remote station and the remaining body ... " His voice trailed off as he realized what Knee was thinking. "The remaining body will be kept here where the infection can be eradicated at our leisure."

        Knee smiled. "Hook me up, Doc. I have a sudden need to travel."

        Clone jump transfers were initially traumatic when jumping into a new clone that had never been used before, but jumping into an old body was much less so. Knee found it useful to exhale at the point of transfer so the impulse would cause the recipient clone to do the same action and prevent inhaling the fluid it was submerged in. He found himself lying down. He calmly sat up, wiped the fluid from his face, took a deep breath, and opened his eyes. A doctor and a small group of nursing attendants were peering at him. "Evening, gentlemen." Knee bellowed.

        "How are you feeling?" The doctor asked.

        "Much better, thanks." He waited to be unhooked from the vat and made his way to the shower.

        Being in a fresh body was invigorating. After cleaning up he chose a light jumpsuit for his attire and took a jog around the station, followed by a hearty, satisfying meal at the commissary. It was expensive to transport the animals from the local planets to the station, but the taste of real meat does wonders for a man's constitution. He would not let his body fail him again.