Recovery and Renewal

Posted on Mon Aug 3rd, 2020 @ 3:55am by

Mission: Season 3: Episode 4: Cause and Effect
Location: Cortic VI
1500 words - 3 OF Standard Post Measure

Kerri had been recovering now for months from her stabbing at the former site of Zhukov's windchime, a stabbing the authorities were trying to pin on Aubrey, who she knew hadn't done it; whenever her brother was near her she recognized him, no matter what, she had since they were children, but there was no sense of familiarity with the man who stabbed her, ergo not Aubrey. She was ready to go home, of course, having decided she would stay on with Ambassador Zhukov per the Ambassador's request, and she was ready to get off of this planet, hopefully before it imploded.

As Col. Tate stared out of the flap of the hospital tent, Dr. Jernick, her physician of record, watched her, she had to clear a lot of beds today, and one of them, against Jernick's wishes, was Col. Tate. Physically there was no more need for her to be there, even though Jernick didn't feel she was safe outside of the hospital; ~As soon as she leaves here, her brother will take another shot at her.~ Jernick thought as she stepped over to her patient, "Good morning, Kerri." She said brightly, though she hoped she could get Col. Tate to agree to leave on the first outbound ship, which was the SS Labrador headed to Bajor in three hours, straight from the hospital.

"Dr. Jernick, hi." Kerri replied, not turning to face the doctor, enjoying watching the kids playing soccer in the front yard area as she was, "So, what brings you by, doc?"

"Kerri, Colonel, I have to clear about twenty one beds out today to make room for some people from the most recent outbreak of the virus, an one of them is going to be you." Jernick informed her, "There's no reason I see physically to keep you here."

"Great." Kerri smiled, "I'm ready to get out of here anyway."

"That's good." Jernick nodded, "So, can I drive you to the spaceport and get you on the Labrador. It'll get you to Bajor, you can find transport to Vulcan to the Embassy from there, maybe stay on DS9 for a while?"

"I'm not leaving, Doctor." Kerri replied, "I'm going to stay here to assist Home Guard with the coming evacuations and..."

"And you're begging for trouble if you stay here, Colonel." Jernick complained, "Colonel, your brother is on this planet somewhere, and he's already tried to kill you once..."

"That man at the pit was not my brother." Kerri shook her head, everyone seemed to think that every time someone turned up with a knife in them that her brother had done it, she would be glad to see the end of that, "I don't know who he was, but he wasn't Aubrey."

"Colonel Tate, does it really matter who it was?" Jernick asked, she felt the question legitimate at the very least, "They already tried to kill you and if you stay they might show up again to finish the job. I need you to leave this planet, Colonel, for your own safety."

"When the mission is completed, I'll leave." Kerri replied earnestly, "But not one second before."

"As you wish, Colonel." Jernick relented, her ex-wife was a Marine, she knew how stubborn they were, she'd never win this argument, "But can you at least keep a low profile and take some other steps to protect yourself from your would be killer, whoever that might be?"

"Already done." Kerri said with a wink and a grin, pulling up her shirt tail to shoe the concealed TR-110-K in her waistband, "Used it for ten years or more, never missed, jammed, nothing."

"Well, here's hoping you get approached directly so you can use it and don't get ambushed again like last time." Jernick sighed, turning to the sound of a door whooshing open and Capt. Anderson storming into the hospital, "What's he on about?" She wondered aloud as she got up to go see what was going on, "Captain, how can I help you?"

"Yes, Doctor, have you seen Corporal Trout?" Anderson asked, his tone far less angry than before, "He's been gone from his post at the children's home for almost a full day and was believed to be on his way here."

Jernick gave a quick scan of her padd, "Was he coming as a patient or to get supplies?" She asked, before adding, "Either way he's never check in here."

"Blast! I knew it, the filthy bugger deserted, leaving those poor children defenseless in his cowardice." Anderson complained, "If I could find him I'd have him shot for this."

"Captain, surely that's not needed." Jernick sighed, Capt. Anderson was so dramatic sometimes.

"Only the Colonel can tell me what's needed, Doctor." Anderson replied bruskly, "And speaking of Colonels, how is Colonel Tate?"

"I'm fine." Kerri said as she stepped into view, "Thanks for asking. So, what's wrong, Captain?"

"The yellow bugger of a Corporal I had keeping the orphans safe has deserted his post, Colonel." Anderson replied, "Packed his things and probably already off world by now. Who in Hell will protect those poor children now?"

"How about me?" Kerri shrugged in volunteering, "A Colonel with decades of experience has to be worth a part time Corporal, or at least almost be as good. I assume there's a billet, right? Seeing as I've just been evicted from my place here."

"Right, indeed." Anderson nodded, "Thank you, Colonel. I'll inform Col. vel-Cro you've offered to assist us."

"Thank you, Captain, and send my greetings to the Colonel." Kerri smiled, turning to Dr. Jernick, "Assuming I'm cleared for duty."

"Quite clear." Jernick smiled, though she was worried that whoever tried to kill Tate would now be pointed at those defenseless children.

"Right," Kerri smiled, "Capt. Anderson, lead the way, sir."



Kerri, having settled into the guard house, now decided to familiarize herself with the children's home she was charged with protecting. As she entered one of the sleeping areas she noticed it was colder than the others and quickly ascertained why, an Andorian child, no more than a year old, sitting up in the bassinet crying for someone or something, causing the here to now unknown maternal instincts in Kerri to crop up and send her running to the baby to pick her up, "There there, sweetheart, it's okay, Kerri's got you."

The baby settled down quickly, laying her head against Kerri's chest as one of the nurses, a woman she knew only as Mary, entered the room, "Oh, you managed to get her calmed down, good." Mary smiled, "She's probably looking for her lovey. It's a little stuffed piglet, blue in color. She can't sleep without it."

"She's pretty attached, huh?" Kerri whispered, not wanting to wake the poor child again.

"I think that she knows it's all she has left of her birth family." Mary shook her head sadly, "They were murdered by members of the Dunphy gang right before the big gun went supernova on them."

"The Dunphy gang...." Kerri said with a shudder, remembering how badly both the Queen and Gary's little redheaded friend, what was her name? Galas? No, Gallia! Wanted one Quinton Dunphy to pay for his crimes, "So, any idea what market that little piggy went to?"

"I don't know, Colonel, I'm sorry." Mary sighed, "Maybe you ask Kelly in the laundry? She might have collected it by mistake."

"Thanks, Mary." Tate nodded as she laid the baby back into her bed, "Next stop laundry, Operation Piggy Hunt is a go."

A short walk later and Kerri was in the laundry, where she saw Kelly, a pretty twenty year old student, about to dump a load of laundry into the machine, a load containing a little, blue piglet, "Hey, hold on!" Kerri ordered, though she didn't go full jarhead on the girl, "I need that pig."

"I finally can get it away from Baby girl Blue so I can wash it and now I get interrupted ." Kelly sighed, handing the entire wash basket to the new woman, Colonel Somebody.

Kerri quickly retrieved piggy from the basket, "You can't wash this. It probably still smells like her home, like her mommy, you can't take that away from Blue. I'm returning this to it's owner, leave it be from now on, please."

"Sir, yes, sir." Kelly sighed, Marines were bad enough, but a sentimental Marine, what was that even? Whatever, she thought, watching the other woman turn and leave, clutching the little pig like it was a dossier full of state secrets or something.

A few minutes later and Kerri slipped back into Baby girl Blue's room, nodding and smiling to Mary as she held the piglet up in a showing of triumph, before sliding it into Blue's bed where it belonged and never should've been removed from, "There you go, baby girl, sleep sweet." She whispered, gently kissing the sleeping baby's antennae, "And remember, Kerri loves you."