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Sickbay...When the past doesn't match the present...or the future...Routine Maintenance

Posted Nov. 12, 2021, 7:36 a.m. by Lieutenant Commander Ethan Nash (Chief Engineer) (David Shotton)

Posted by Lieutenant Lauren Shan (Doctor) in Sickbay…When the past doesn’t match the present…or the future…Routine Maintenance

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Ethan Nash (Chief Engineer) in Sickbay…When the past doesn’t match the present…or the future…Routine Maintenance

Posted by Lieutenant Lauren Shan (Doctor) in Sickbay…When the past doesn’t match the present…or the future…Routine Maintenance
Posted by… suppressed (4) by the Post Ghost! 👻
“And that is when everything went to hell and the Captain got hurt,” The Bajoran Intelligence Officer ended the short story that he had used to fill Nash in on what was going on. Leaning on the console that the Chef Engineer had been using to draw up reports, Rand crossed his arms and adjusted his powerfully built shoulders, aware of the glances of a small number of Engineers as he spoke to Nash. Nash and Rand were two men who had a similar background, in that both of them had a chequered history in Starfleet and both had been Court Martialed. Rand had even been dismissed before being picked up by Starfleet Intelligence and with Nash most people knew the story of how he had disobeyed orders and gotten the Starship he was in temporary Command of destroyed in combat. The reasons Kelly had picked up both of these two was lost to most of the crew, but both of them had their own reasons to be here.

“So what happened to the aliens?” Nash asked, giving up on his data entry for the time being and crossing his arms in similar fashion to Rand. Taller than the Bajoran, the Mintaran was similarly built though not as wide of the shoulder. “Kelly is in sickbay?”

“The bulk of them are in the Brig after the firefight in the Transporter room under the Security Chiefs watchful eyes,” Rand continued, “Lauren had some business in there taking samples for some reason, but that’s the other part,” he paused slightly, “they have taken a girl along with the Captain to the Medical wards, she was apparently injured in the fight badly enough to require emergency surgery. They even have a couple of Security gorillas standing watch over the bed in Sickbay itself despite the bio-contamination fields like she’s going to grow claws and rip everyone apart, probably the Security Chief being overzealous again but the Captain’s in recovery as well.”

“That’s to be expected, maybe,” Nash nodded, “we have no idea who these people are or where they are from, right? In the Sickbay is odd though, outside the doors is the standard procedure if there is no imminent threat so the Medical team can work without distraction.” Nash shrugged slightly and looked at Rand, “So what do you want me to do?”

“So I know that the Sickbay is due to have diagnostics done on the fields, but how about you bring that check forward seeing as we have the Captain and a guest from gods-knows-where visiting. I’m likely going to be caught up with Intel for the next day or so, so it would do me a solid of you could check on Lauren as well.”

“Consider it done. It gives me a reason to check on Kelly anyway, and the diagnostic does need to be done, better now than later, right.” Nash turned and picked up his tool belt from the chair next to the console and began to strap it on.

Pushing himself to his feet, Rand grinned and clapped the Chief Engineer on the shoulder. “Thanks, I’ll owe you one, drinks on me next time I see you in the lounge, alright.”

Lt Devon Rand, Intel

“You still owe me from last time, you cheap sod,” Nash quipped as the two of them walked out of Main Engineering. Where Nash stopped for a Turbolift to Sickbay however Rand kept on walking, he had another job to see to.

Minutes later and Nash walked through the sickbay doors, then paused. The bustle of activity without an immediate emergency and the presence of the aforementioned ‘Gorillas’ was obvious. While Nash had the unmistakable urge to check on Kelly he knew she would be well cared for by the CMO directly and he would just get in the way so he turned directly for Lauren.

“Hey, Gassy Doctor,” he threw out in greeting as he approached Lauren, “I decided to bring the diagnostic on that Bio-field forward, heard you might need to make sure the field works right.” Reaching Lauren, he leant on the edge of the desk and looked around. “Busy day right? Heard you got Kelly in here and another guest too,” he leaned his head towards the Security team as he spoke. “How are you holding up? Rand told me if I checked on you he would buy me booze, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to make him pay for a change, personally.”

Nash, CE

“I feel like a metric crap-ton of $hi# has been dumped on me but I don’t have a fractured skull or lost half my body weight in blood so I’m hanging in there,” Lauren looked up at the officer standing next to her. For the moment sickbay was eerily quiet. That was because all cases were being directed to the secondary clinics on other decks unless it was an emergency. There were plenty of doctors on the Altantis so the care of the crew was easily maintained until whatever was going on settled down and life could return to normal. Dropping her stylus she rubbed her eyes before leaning back in her seat.

“Kelly seems to be doing fine. Evrilla is damn good at her job. While it sounds serious when I throw all the medical terms at you it’s kinda like an issue with the warp core. You throw about all kinds of words that make people want to run to the nearest life pod but in reality, things are under control.” Lauren could list all the procedures and injuries to Nash but it would be a laundry list and cause more questions than reassurances right now. “Ripping the band aid off,” she shrugged, “Kelly will be back to herself in no time.” Her comment was vague but not because she didn’t want to share information. It was because Lauren’s mind was somewhere else.

Rarely did Lauren have the soft look on her face as she did now. The woman was far from helpless but the expression she was giving him was one only Rand ever saw.
“Nash…I neeh,” she started to speak before a bleep and then steady beep began to sound from Jessa’s monitors. Forgetting what she was about to say, Lauren was already on her feet and heading to the small isolation bay Jessa was recovering in.

Crossing the room, Lauren saw the men at the door and instantly prepared for a fight. “Don’t start,” she leveled a finger at one of them never stopping her pace. “I need to check on her and he needs to make sure this field does not go down,” she snapped in a don’t cross me tone. Lauren could not do two things at once. Her priority was the patient and if the man in front of her tried to slow her and Nash’s forward progression it would not be the first time she took someone out. She had gassed an entire security division once on the Chimera over the welfare of a child and had zero issues doing it again. Approaching the biocontainment field, Lauren thought she saw it flicker a half-second before she entered but it had been a long day and she was starting to feel the effects. Entering the room Lauren immediately began to take in the readings from the hologram above the girl’s bed.

Jane Doe’s life signs were stable but she seemed to be struggling to come out of the sedative. While not exactly needed, Lauren needed the girl to stay sedated a bit longer. It wouldn’t hurt her and with everything going on, letting the girl rest until the adults figured things out was the best option. “It’s okay honey. You’re safe,” Lauren said gently before moving to a cabinet and pulling out a hypo.

Jessa let out a small moan and her lips moved slightly as if trying to say something. The effects of her injury or the drugs made the movement sloppy and slow. Her lip parted some but before any words came out it began to tremble slightly. The once peaceful expression Jessa wore sleeping was sliding into one of confusion and sadness. The skin around her eyes tightened as if Jessa were trying to close her eyes tighter. Another sound escaped her lips but this was a small hiccuping sound that was most often associated with crying as one gasped air between sobs. The monitor showed her heart rate and respiration were increasing.

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Jessa’s subconscious
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“It’s okay honey. You’re safe,” a voice seemed to stab through the murky darkness that was clouding Jessa’s vision. The voice sounded familiar or was it the words that were familiar. Jessa didn’t know. All she knew was that she was scared and did not want to let go of the person she was holding. The sensation of the physical touch felt disjointed. She was holding someone around the neck but the pressure was on her hand, covering both sides of it as if someone was holding it and not her body. Fighting she opened her eyes and lifted her head looking around.

===============================
Jessa’s isolation room on the Atlantis
===============================

Pausing and looking between the girl on the bed and Lauren as she fetched a hypo, Nash felt a twinge of memory as he looked at the young woman on the bed. She was just a kid. How could she have been caught up in what was going on? Watching the girls facial expressions the turmoil was clear on her face. Nash found himself taking a step to her bed and reaching out, taking hold of her hand in a vain attempt to offer comfort.

Jessa’s fingertips twitched slightly and her hand shook slightly once. They slowly closed around the hand now holding hers. Lauren looked over at Nash standing by Jessa’s bed. This was a side no one had ever seen of the man. Nash didn’t hide that he once had a wife and child but the people here only knew him as the gruff, isolated loner he tended to be. The way he looked at the kid sank Lauren’s heart. The man still wore the loss of his family like an impenetrable armor preventing any love or happiness seep in yet right now, he was letting down his guard even if only for a small second.

“Is she ok?” He asked simply.

Staring at the EEG and MEG readings Lauren moved across the room next to Jessa and brushed a lock of hair off her cheek. “She is dreaming,” Lauren said looking back at the monitors. “Her hippocampus is lighting up like a Christmas tree.” She hoped that the kid was remembering better times but all the emotions and gestures pointed to this not being the case. “Don’t be sad or scared,” Lauren said gently running her hands over the girl’s hair, “we are with you okay.”

The words echoed in Jessa’s mind burning the thought into her brain. It was like she not only heard them but felt them. They both comforted her and forced her deeper into a memory she was desperate to forget but more desperate to remember every detail. Her breathing increased more and Jessa felt her chest ache and burn.

“Talk to her,” Lauren said to Nash as she moved back to the cabinet getting more medicine. She needed to give something to help steady the girl’s heart rate. The surgery went well but the last thing Lauren needed was to put a strain on the vein less than two hours after surgery. Getting metoprolol, Lauren injected it and instantly the kid’s pressure started to go back down.

“And say what exactly?” Nash said with some slight surprise, looking up. Looking down again, he began to talk to her, small nothings about being safe and going to get better. Things Nash had no idea whether or not they were true but to him they sounded comforting.

Lauren looked at him and sighed. Part of the reason was she was struggling with words at this moment. The kid in the bed could easily be her own. It was clear the kid was in over her head. Whether she knew it or not remained to be seen. While Lauren had the experience of being Jane Doe’s age, making bad choices, and not having a friend in the world, Ethan could relate to the idea of a kid being lost and alone and hurt. Lauren had no doubt somewhere in the back of his mind, he journeyed to a moment where everything was ending on the colony his kid lived, and his wife was there holding his child’s hand trying to convince them it would be alright when you had no clue if this was a line. “She just needs to know she is not trapped there alone,” Lauren said softly moving over to a monitor and reading another diagnostic display.

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Jessa’s subconscious
==================

The scenery was familiar. They were in the large park, sitting on the stone bench, under the tree where she and her mom came daily. The park was like any park on any planet except for the colors. The red sky above caused the wavelength of light to alter the photosynthetic properties of the vegetation from green into the blue and purple spectrum. Jessa knew other planets had different colors but this was all she had ever known or at least was confident she knew. The hands holding her again pressed her body towards the person holding her and Jessa settled comfortably in the woman’s arms as she rested her head on the woman’s shoulder.

“You are going to love the school. You will have friends and get to play all the time whenever you want. It will be like one big sleepover except instead of just being with mommy you will have girls and boys your own age.” The voice tried to sound excited and happy but the words were tearing her apart. Jessa was only three. She was far too young to be alone yet Bria had no choice. She could not take her, not until she knew the child would be safe. The pain and guilt of adult decisions washed over the woman threatening to crush her. Closing her eyes, she hugged Jessa just a bit tighter and for just a bit longer seeing a woman approaching them across the large expanse of grass between them and the school. Bria pushed the image from her mind and leaned back pulling the little girl off her shoulder and to the side of her lap so she could look at her. Time was running short and drawing this out was not going to help either her or Jessa.

“And when you get sad or scared,” Bria felt her eyes starting to fill, “remember I am always with you okay.” Reaching around her neck, she unclasped the small locket she had worn for years. Placing it around Jessa’s neck, she felt the clasp lock and a sense of relief washed over the woman. The metal was an alloy as strong as the metal on any ship’s hull. Nothing the little girl could do would break it and no one could remove it unless they decapitated Jessa. The only way for the necklace to come on or off was the genetic signature of the wearer. While it was slightly too large for now, Jessa would grow into it. “See,” Bria directed the little girl’s attention to the heart-shaped locked with deep sapphire blue stone. “You have mommy and daddy’s heart right here above your own,” she tucked the necklace below Jessa’s shirt and patted the girl’s chest. “As long as you never take it off we are always going to be right here,” she patted Jessa’s heart again, “right with you.”

Even at three, Jessa could sense something was wrong with her mom. They had never been apart for even an hour except for when she slept and even then her mom was always in the next room or beside her. “I promise I won’t bother you,” Jessa put her small arms around her mom’s neck and held her tightly. She had no idea why or what she had done to make her mom leave but there had to be a way she could fix it. “I will be as quiet as a Chrisven mouse…all the time,” Jessa promised tightening her grip. “I promise.”

Bria looked up seeing the woman now standing a respectable distance from them to give the mother and daughter the last few moments of privacy they had left. “I know you would love ducks,” she let out a laugh, “but Chrisven mice are actually so loud. Remember when we had that one in the apartment and we would laugh about how noisy of a neighbor he was scurrying un and down the walls all night.” The memory brought a hint of smile out of Jessa and broke Bria’s heart. She had made so many mistakes but who thought about anything past the immediate when you were seventeen. Kissing Jessa’s forehead, Bria booped her on the nose hoping it would help ease some of the stress she knew her daughter was experiencing. “And when I come back we are going to plan a trip to go see daddy,” Bria said confidently. Whether or not this would happen only fate knew. Bria had to take care of things first here before taking off across the galaxy.

Never knowing or even seeing the man, Jessa had little to no interest in her father. She had her mother and her mother was her world. Pulling out the necklace her mother had given her, Jessa studied it intently running a small finger over the large blue heart-shaped stone.

“Jessa,” a sweet and elderly voice said from behind the girl. “You ready to meet the other girls. They are so excited to meet you.” The woman let her eyes drift to Bria and gave her a small encouraging nod. No one at the school but her understood the unusual circumstances surrounding the arrival of the new pupil. The official paperwork had her listed as a boarding student and that is how it would remain.

Bria hated lifting Jessa off her lap and setting the little girl on her feet. Right now Bria Novar hated everything and everyone in the universe. This was not how it was supposed to happen. This was not how she had planned to live her life but at times the universe had different plans you could not easily alter. As Jessa slipped her hand into the woman’s Bria dropped to her knees embracing the little girl one last time. “One day so soon I will be right there,” she turned Jessa to the bench. “I will be right there so wait for me because I am going to be back so fast you will never miss me. Just wait for me on the bench okay love ducks,” she kissed the little girl again before standing up and walking away. She knew as brave as Jessa was, the child was only three and would soon panic. Hearing her cry would break Bria’s resolve and nothing could do that. She had a job and the faster that job was completed the faster she could get back to Jessa. The faint sound of mommy yelled out over the breeze but Bria kept walking. If she stopped they would only be running for the rest of their lives.

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Jessa’s isolation room on the Atlantis
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“Mawwwww hhhh,” Jessa’s lips contorted and struggled to form a word. It looked almost painful from the perspective of Lauren and Nash. The girl was dreaming but clearly, it was turning into a nightmare as Jessa’s facial features twisted trying to convey physically what she was experiencing mentally. The biocontainment field flickered briefly almost as if someone was passing through it. Her hand opened as if trying to shake off Nash’s grip but the only movement was her fingertips no longer curled around his hand. Jessa was desperately caught in a dream she could not wake from or was it a dream. Her skin felt cold which did not fit with the bright yellow-orange sun rays that lit up the morning around her. The woman was holding her hand as Jessa watched her mother walk away but the voices did not match. The voice was not soft and gentle like she remembered but more masculine as it tried to soothe her and assure her things were going to be okay.

Lauren Shan

Lauren

Nash held the girls hand slightly tighter, and like Lauren before him brushed away a stray hair from her face that her movement had cast over her. “Hey, easy now, you are safe,” Nash said again, but this time his other hand closed around his tricorder and he began to take measurements of the field. “The Bio field is fluctuating,” he told Lauren while she worked. “Nothing serious, but I’ll need to run a few calibrations of the field emitters. They can stay up while I do it, but it will take some time.”

Looking down at the girl, he frowned slightly. “She’s dreaming, remembering something,” he told Lauren. “Something in her past that keeps troubling her. I know that look.”

Nash

“Its going to be okay,” Lauren said in a calm, reassuring voice. It was then she stopped talking and began to hum a soft song. after a few bars she added the chorus to the lyrics.

Play that song
The one that makes me go all night long
The one that makes me think of you
That’s all you gotta do

The song was older but not unknown. Lauren didn’t have the voice of a singer yet she could hold her own singing in this fashion. A sweet, gentle tone reminiscent of a lullaby. The grip Jessa had on Nash’s hand lessened but did not release. It moved more into the grip of someone holdings someone’s hand because they wanted to instead of out of fear.

Lauren Shan Doctor

Hey mister DJ when you gonna spin it
My baby’s favorite record
She been waiting for a minute
She invited all her friends
And I’m buying all the rounds
And they’re all dolled up
DJ please don’t let me down

Nash adjusted his own hand hold in response to the girls softer hold, he wasn’t exactly singing, more speaking in tune. He didn’t let go of her, but looked between her and his tricorder.

“I know that song,” he smiled, “It was one of Emily’s favourites.” He watched the girl as he laid his tricorder on the bed beside her, taking a scan of the field as he sat with her. “She seems to have settled down,” he told Lauren, “How bad did she get hurt?”

His own daughter would have been around this girls age by now, and something tugged at Nash on the inside, a spark of caring that he generally didn’t let show to most people.

Nash


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