Tired Valkyrie

Posted on Fri Oct 16th, 2020 @ 4:13am by Commander Sthilg & Lieutenant Tate Sullivan Ph.D. & Lieutenant Commander Alicia Kelea-Salik & Lieutenant Commander Savar cha'Salik hei-Surak Talek-sen-deen [Taylor] & Senior Chief Petty Officer Fernando De La Rosa [Taylor] & Lieutenant JG Heather De La Rosa {Kelea-Salik} & Avalon [ADMIN NPC]

Mission: SEASON 4: Episode 1: Know Thy Self!
Location: USS Elysium, Sickbay
Timeline: After the Battle.
1422 words - 2.8 OF Standard Post Measure

If anyone had seen combat exhaustion, It was shown in Commander Vaii. The mental stress, the toll on her body. The Battle had ended and Jessica was using her phaser rifle as a walking stick. She had to see if that little boy got off the station. "Alicia!!! Savar!!!" Jess called out.

It was a struggle to keep her eyes open. She'd been fighting for three days, and trying to sleep on a station filled with the nightmarish mental screams of torture had finally taken their toll on Jessica. At least the pain and screams had stopped, now her telepathy was flooded with pure anger, extreme grief, and grateful emotions from the crew. Jess turned into sickbay and collapsed right then and there into a nearby chair. "You Terran bastards. You better not even fathom trying to enslave my crew again. Or I'll show you what war really looks like." She was getting the last of the anger out that was feeding her fore these long days.

The heavy footsteps of the ships MD were soon over at the chair. A medical triquarter in his hands as he examined the exhausted pilot. " Come on valkyrie let's get you into a biobed." he said as he slowly picked her up.

Alicia was already in Sickbay along with the rest of the survivors, like Jess she had arrived suffering from the telepathic trauma of all the emotions her mind was being subjected to plus the fact that she was pregnant. She’d been requested to stay for observation until her stress levels and blood pressure had had dropped. Baby Connor was none the wiser to what was going on around him as he slept by Alicia’s bedside. “Jess!” Alicia smiled as she sat on the edge of her biobed next door to where Sthilg had carried Jess. “Hang in there Jess, you’re home now.”

Savar had been dividing his time between Alicia and Connor and seeing to the needs of multiple patients. Only his Vulcan mental discipline kept him going. When called out for him and Alicia, he moved to her with all dispatch. "I am here Commander. How may I assist you

Jess settled down in the biobed. "I have orders for you Counselors and you too Doctor Sthilg. This is my last official act as Acting Captain of the USS Elysium." Jess noted with her usual leadership skills. "You are to confiscate the crew's personal sidearms until such time you deem it appropriate to return them, as if you do not, you'll have more of us to bury one or two weeks from now when we fight this battle in our dreams, night after night. And take care of that rifle over there for me. I've grown quite fond of it and her name is Grunhilda." Jessica noted. "That being said. I am overjoyed you and my new adoptive nephew made it out of there alive. I wasn't going to let the monster that tortured and enslaved us raise him, as I was raised by a monster for the first fourteen of my life. I know what was in store for him, and what his mother was thinking, oh do I ever know. He would have grown up inside one of those pain things." Jess noted. "I joined starfleet to fight tyrants like him and my mother."

" It will be done, commander." the gorn said as he hooked her up to an iv drip as he took the rifle from her which he handed to one of his nurses. " Now lay back and try to relax. I'll get a Ssstearo fish to help you relax."

Alicia looked at Savar as she made herself comfortable on the biobed. “She’s right, we’re going to have a problem with the backlash from this for sometime to come. I can see my schedule being very full.”

"We will manage Alicia, we will find a way to help all who need our services." Savar promised quietly.

Alicia nodded. “Even you need rest Imzadi” She offered a warm smile. “Vulcans may be mentally strong but even you can’t keep plowing on forever.” She looked at Connor. “Besides we have a little man to keep us on our toes now.”

Jessica fell asleep, letting herself drift off. "If any of you wake me up, I swear I am goi...." She then zonked out completely.

"I am alright Alicia," Savar protested. "Please conserve your strength for our son. He will need you to be well rested."

Alicia nodded. “I will” With that she lay herself back down to rest, at least something good had come from their ordeals.

Having been cleared to work already, Tate entered Sickbay, not feeling 100% herself, but feeling so much better after a hot shower, some water, and some food. By some miracle, the only blood she had on her were that of others during the time she had spent on the station caring for the slaves she encountered. Deep down, she felt guilty for coming out of this experience relatively unscathed compared to others, but she knew she had to push those feelings aside, and in a way, it was a strange sort of penance to care for people now in the best ways she knew how.

She quietly conferred with the nurses and some of the senior medical staff to review trauma informed protocols for treating the survivors. The fortunate, and equally sad truth was, the medical and counseling staff of the Elysium had treated enough survivors of torture and other traumas to now know what to do to preserve evidence and not re-traumatize people anymore than they already had been. Search protocols included not approaching patients without permission unless there was clear evidence there were life-threatening injuries that needed to be attended to or the patient was clearly unconscious. It also means taking more time with each survivor and doing a more deliberate job of explaining what was going to be done. The last thing any survivor of a trauma needed was to be poked, prodded, and questioned in a rapidfire manner. Although the counseling staff would be stretched thin, it was also important to Tate that each survivor was met by a counselor following his or her medical treatment, not so much to process anything immediately, but just to connect each member of the crew with someone who could offer support. It would be easy in these major events to let psychological injuries fall through the cracks, particularly if someone didn't sustain any major physical injuries that required a lengthy infirmary stay. Tate was determined not to let anyone go overlooked.

That was her medicine, and right now, she found comfort in seeing familiar faces. Approaching Alicia with a wry smile, she offered, "How are you feeling?"

"I'm okay" Alicia smiled warmly at Tate. "I was one of the lucky ones, I had Savar to keep me safe." She nodded towards Jess. "I'm more worried about Jess, she's suffered a lot more than me. The same goes for a lot of the other telepaths and empaths onboard, the emotions over there were ..." She shook her head. "Astounding ... I think if we we'd been stuck there any longer there'd have been a real risk of people going insane."

The gorn returned with a small tank on a trolly. " okay everyone i have a Ssstearo fish for any telepath who wants one. They look revolting, but they'll sssort your head out. "

Alicia looked at Sthilg. “I might give one a try if they’re suitable for me.”

" There universssal my dear." The gorn said reaching into the tank before emerging with a little fish. It's body appeared to be covered with a stony shell apart from its sucker shaped tothless mouth. " Now i just place the little girl on your neck and ssshe'll help level out your brain'sss telpathicty levelsss. Don't worry ssshe's perfectly sssafe."

Alicia gently took the fish and placed it as Sthilg had suggested before resting her head and letting the little fish do its work.

" Feeling better?" The gorn said as he monitored her levels which were thankfully leveling out.

“Definitely better” Alicia nodded. “I think you can have your friendly fish back anytime you’re ready.”

" Ssshe's to ssstay on for an hour." The gorn said as the tank sightly shook. " Oh be quiet you." He said looking at the tank as he dropped in a piece of food. " Sssorry the male of the ssspecies can be rather rude when his femalesss are missssssing."