Posted by Lieutenant Commander Tolar Zarath (Chief Medical Officer) in Sickbay - Boarding Medical Evaluation

Posted by Ensign Mara Oxton (Engineer) in Sickbay - Boarding Medical Evaluation

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Tolar Zarath (Chief Medical Officer) in Sickbay - Boarding Medical Evaluation
Posted by… suppressed (3) by the Post Ghost! 👻
Mara strode towards Sickbay, it was sort of strange for her to understand that Mika wasn’t going to be there… She was going to have to make new friends, and explain things again.
She walked into sickbay and smiled warmly,

“Hello! Ensign Mara Oxton reporting for my boarding medical!”

~ Ensign Mara Oxton {Engineer}

“Ensign Oxton, what a surprise!” The gravelly voice of Doctor Zarath filled the small sickbay. His tone was definitely sarcastic but had no rancor to it at all. In fact, he did smile politely when he finally turned around from the large wall display he’d been studying, to greet her. Motioning her to a bio-bed, he went on, “Please have a seat and we’ll get you evaluated.” While she got situated, he took up his cane and moved to his desk to retrieve his Tricorder.

Zarath was older than the other crew, in his early fifties, perhaps. He was only a few inches taller than Mara, standing about 5’ 8”, with snowy white hair which was kept short and in a military fashion. His skin was sky blue from head to foot and large antennae sprouted from small ridges in his forehead. His antennae were in a constant state of motion, questing to and fro, seemingly of their own accord. However, sometimes they also moved to highlight his moods or speech or reactions to things. He wore the standard medical colored Starfleet uniform, but also a white lab coat. Notably, he walked with a limp and used an ebony cane for support. The limp didn’t seem to pain him, nor did it seem to keep him from moving about quickly and efficiently.

-Zarath, CMO

Mara sat down on the biobed he had motioned to, and anxiously swung her legs back and forth like a child. She looked around, hospitals and sickbays had always scared her ever since she was a little girl. Maybe it was the numerous times she had to visit the hospital back on Earth due to always falling over, at least that was the stupid excuse her parents always gave to the doctors. Sighing, she sat sort of still and waited for the evaluation to begin. Mara had decided to say nothing until questions were asked, though she felt like asking the questions rather than answering them. Like, how did his antennae work? Or why were Andorians blue? Or what was his full name? Favourite colour? What do Andorians eat? Though, she decided to bite her tongue and ask nothing of the sorts.

~ Ensign Mara Oxton {Engineer}

The Doctor moved confidently but stopped short once he actually got a look at Mara as he came back by the Bio-bed with the scanner in hand. He looked at her for a long moment, the only thing moving, his antennae. His rather dour demeanor cracked just a bit.

“You don’t like Doctors.” He said quietly. Then he smiled, not a big smile, but a small, wry, and understanding smile. “Well don’t worry, I don’t bite… I’m Doctor Zarath.” He began to move the scanner attachment of the Tricorder in the air above Mara, taking readings and nodding to himself.

“They sense magnetic fields and gravimetric fluctuations.” He said quietly but kindly, answering her unspoken question. “Helps me to move around underground. My people live underground, beneath the ice shelves. We evolved these to help us know which caves were stable enough to live in and help us be aware of what else lived in them. …and No, they don’t give me any telepathic ability… I just get asked a lot. It’s ok, I don’t mind.”

-Zarath, CMO

She suddenly shuddered at his comment about doctors, unsure of how to answer it she stammered, and forgot about the protocols her parents ran through her multiple times.

“I’ve visited the doctors too often Sir. They start to get sort of… scary?”

How was she supposed to explain that a visit to the doctors gave her anxiety, to the point she felt like she was in that situation again? Having to lie to the doctors and explain that she was just a clumsy kid, even though there was something much more sinister going on? It did scare her being in sickbay. She was able to push through it on the Challenger, the medic being a woman and all (she always felt more comfortable with women) . But the Europa was different. Even so, Zarath gave her a sort of comfort and safety, as if she knew he would never hurt her. Perhaps it was his age, or the fact he was so soft-spoken that it made her feel safe.
Upon hearing him mention that he was okay with questions, she perked up and started smiling excitedly.

“What’s your favourite food? Favourite colour? What do Andorians eat? What’s your full name?”

~ Ensign Mara Oxton {Engineer}

Inwardly, Tolar seethed with a wave of hot anger at what his readings told him about the young woman. He knew exactly what kind of old injuries he was seeing here, and probably how they’d happened. The time frame of the older ones was what angered him most. A part of himself that he’d locked away a long time ago, the soldier, the killer… That part of him wanted to rip whoever had hurt this young woman apart with his bare hands. None of this inner turmoil showed outwardly, of course. He was too old and experienced and had excellent control of his face and emotions.

Outwardly, Doctor Zarath kept scanning, with a steady hand and a gentle smile. “Hmm…” He considered for a moment. “I think the meal I enjoy most is probably Chicken Fried Steak, an ancient earth cuisine. Chief Franklin introduced me to it, apparently, his family had their own recipe. As for my favorite color, I’d have to say Green. Though you’d have to understand Andorians and Humans see refracted light slightly differently, so what we call Green might not be exactly the same color.” His scanning finished with a quiet beep from the Tricorder, which he set down. Picking up his PaDD, he began making an entry in her medical file.

“Andorians are Omnivorous, like Humans. We eat various sea creatures, and some land animals, along with native plant life. Our version of wheat is called Fat Grass. We traditionally use it to make a hard crusty bread. Vegetables usually tend toward things you might call Tubers or Fungi. Redbat is considered a delicacy on Andoria. Prepared with Flat Root and Hari Bread, though it’s doubtful whether or not you’d find it appealing.” He chuckled. He also neglected to mention the Orange Speckled Beetles which Andorians took pleasure in suggesting that humans sample. “I have some Tea from home if you’d like to try some, though I’ve been told humans find it quite bitter tasting.”

-Zarath, CMO

Mara smiled warmly, she had started to think about her favourite meals, and had gone down a nice thought spiral that was filled with old memories… The good ones.

“I think you’d like my spicy fajitas, mum taught me how to cook them. Eventually she admitted that I make them way nicer than she does! I like the colour yellow, it reminds me of happiness”

The memories of her mother had always been much fonder than the ones of her father. She never blamed Valerie for what happened, like herself. Her mum was too scared to do anything else rather than cower and ride out his anger.

“Sure, I like trying new things! I once ate a bit of a snake on a dare!”

~ Ensign Mara Oxton {Engineer}