New Joy

Posted on Sun Jun 18th, 2023 @ 7:57am by Captain David Tonelly [Reece] & Commander Sthilg & Lieutenant Baeryn Whavi-Tonelly & Lieutenant JG Heather De La Rosa {Kelea-Salik}

Mission: Season 6: Episode 2: Survival
Location: Medical Tent
Timeline: MD 6 / 1307 hours
2810 words - 5.6 OF Standard Post Measure

David was sitting, in the chair provided, on Baeryn's right side, as she was still in the coma. He was gently holding her hand as he rested, his eyes closed, but not sleeping.

There was more movement from Baeryn tonight then any night prior. A small twitch of her hand. A stutter in her breathing. If someone looked close enough, they could she her eyes moving back and forth behind her lids.

As soon as Baeryn's hand twitched, David's full attention was on her. Sitting forward he continued to hold her hand in his right, while his left went to her forehead. "Baer?" He spoke softly. His eyes watching her every move, looking for any sign of his mate returning to him. "Come back to me, baby..."

For a few long minutes Baeryn didn't respond, her body seeming to slip back into its sleeping state. The rapid movement of her eyes slowing. Then suddenly her body tightened, she seemed to almost sit up as she moaned in pain. The pain only lasting for a minute before she lay flat again.

"Baer!" David called out as he moved closer to hold his mate. Through his abilities, he started to feel a difference in both Baeryn's energy and their unborn daughter's. He had a quick flash of fear that something was wrong, so he called out into the rest of the medical area. "Nurse!!"

Baeryn's fingers tightened around David's as she blinked her eyes open. Confusion and fear colored her face as she took in her surroundings, but eventually her eyes drifted to the man who stood next to her. She started to smile, "Davi....." Baeryn shouted as her body curled in on itself again. This contraction far more painful then her last.

Now he knew what was happening. Their daughter was finally coming into the world. "Nurse, hurry!" He called out again. He then did what he could to try and calm Baeryn. "I'm here, Baer. I'm not going anywhere! You're safe here with me, baby." He gently moved the strands of her curly hair clear of her face, now that they were beginning to become plastered onto her forehead from the sweat that was poring from her pores.

Heather rushed across to Baeryn, it was a surprise she was out of her coma let alone giving birth. She looked at the monitor readouts before grabbing a hypospray. “Okay Baeryn,” she smiled as she pressed the hypo to Baeryn’s neck. “That’s just a little something to help bring your blood pressure down, it won’t hurt your baby I promise.”

Heather offered David a warm smile. “Looks like you’re about to become a father." She moved to the foot of the bed. “Okay I’m going to need to examine you Baeryn,” she pulled around some privacy screens, there was nothing worse than giving birth in a room with little privacy. That done, she set about examining Baeryn. “Okay...your daughter is in a hurry, you’re almost fully dilated already. I suggest we bring in Doctor Sthilg, he’s the expert with baby births around here.”

Through the pain lacing down the bottom half of her body, Baeryn did her best to retain the reassuring words of those around her. She took a deep breath, already feeling this wave of contractions start to subside. She dropped back to the pillow and immediately regretted it, laying flat down was not an option for her at the moment. She leaned on her elbows as she was examined. Nodding her understanding to the nurse's assessment. How much time had passed since the chaos ensued on the Elysium? Where in the galaxy even were they?

Sweat poured down her back and forehead, she attempted to remove the blanket to alleviate some of the heat. She turned to David, trying to smile as she reached for his hand. "Where are we?" Her voice was stern, she new it wasn't the appropriate time or setting for a report but she needed at least some of the questions in her head answered before she could focus on the task at hand.

After seeing Baeryn struggle to get comfortable, David did something he had heard other fathers do, pulled the pillows out from behind Baeryn and slid into their place, allowing his mate to lean and push against him as needed. "According to the reports I've heard and read, we are somewhere in the Circinus Galaxy, roughly one-hundred-fifty million light-years from home. The ship is in bad shape, and we lost a lot of people during the trip. Currently, the survivors are all here, in the camp that the Commodore had set up, in a series of caves on the closest, survivable planet we could reach. It's a P Class world, so it's covered in snow and ice. There are some examples of native flora and fauna, but no intelligent life." He gave both of his hands to Baeryn, so she could use them to help squeeze down when the next contraction came. Which, if he was reading their energies correctly, was right about...

The ache she felt on the lower have of her body sudden turned in a searing white hot pain across her belly. Baeryn had felt pain before, she had taken lessons on how to think past it. But this was different and she was underprepared. It was impossible to focus only on the birth when she had no knowledge of the planet she was even bringing her daughter into. Suddenly she was panicking knowing the baby would be outside of its protective womb. She cried out as the contraction tightened the muscles in her uterus even more. "Nurse I don't think I'm going to be able to take much more of this." She bit out between gritted teeth addressing Heather. "I'm not ready, she cant come yet." Tears slipped down from Baeryns shut eyes.

Heather looked at the readouts she was getting, she couldn’t say she liked them, Baeryn’s fear and reluctance was adding undue stress to her labour. “I know it’s hard Baeryn, just stay with it. Breathe through your contractions, and try and stay calm for me, okay?”

As Heather did what she was trained for, David went on instinct and began softly chanting an ancient El Aurian calming prayer, just loud enough for Baeryn to hear the gentle, soothing beats of his voice as he worked through each stanza. The words weren't the important part of the prayer. The goal was to say the words in a certain order, with a certain tone and cadence, to activate the natural endorphin levels of the one hearing the words. While it wouldn't take away her pain completely, it could help to calm Baeryn enough to aid in an easier delivery of their daughter.

Baeryn could feel a since of calm washing over her, under the pain radiating her body. It helped her breath, if only until the next contraction hit. She had too many questions, too many worries, she didn't feel prepared for this but knew deep down there was little anyone could do to stop the birth. She gritted her teeth and tried to deepen her breathing, tried to slow it down. She looked up at David, He looked different from the last time she saw him but couldn't but a finger on it. When the next wave of pain blasted through her she tightened her grip on David's hand, unaware of her longer then normal nails clawing into his warm rough skin.

The door slid open as Sthilg hurried in throwing his winter gear to one side as he ran to the table. " Ssstatussss." He asked the nurse calmly as his hand mothered into it's scanner mode.

“Baeryn awoke from her coma a few minutes ago, her daughter appears to be in somewhat of a hurry to arrive.” Heather smiled. “I’ve administered a small dose to bring down her blood pressure, baby’s vitals are a slightly elevated, and Baeryn is understandably stressed about giving birth so soon.” She chose her words carefully so as not to worry Baeryn.

Seeing the familiar Gorn would have normally brought a genuine smile to Baeryn's face, but being mid contraction she was unable to. Her thick red hair clung to the damp skin of her back of her neck as she sat forward trying to ease the pain. She cried out with little relief when the contraction started to decrease. She caught Heathers words as things became a bit more focused. "Im not ready Sthilg, shes not ready. It's too soon. I need you to make it stop." Her body tightened again as she pleaded, "Please!"

Heather offered a supportive smile. “Baeryn, there is no stopping this. Your daughter is ready to come, to stop that now would case more harm than good. Take it from someone whose been there, it’ll all be okay.” She looked at Sthilg hoping he was in agreement with her statement.

Sthilg nodded as he looked at the scans. " Nothing we can do now I'm afraid. Ssshe'sss coming and ssshe'sss coming fassst."

Hearing the fear in his mate's voice, David tried to soothe her as best he could, given that her fear was for the safety of their daughter. "Baer," he spoke softly into her right ear. "I can see our baby's energy. She is ready, my love. Try to calm down. When you're scared, so is she." He gently kissed her right temple.

Baeryn tried to believe in the their reassurances. She closed her eyes and focused on her breathing, readjusting her grip on David's hands as she pulled him closer. She knew it was her own fear that was getting in the way of being calm but, with David behind her, she could do this. She could bring this beautiful baby into the world, regardless if she knew nothing about the world in which she was. The moment she felt relief from the pain her body tensed up again, forewarning her of the contraction that was soon to follow. She grunted trying to hold back the scream as she naturally felt her body start to push the baby out. "David." Baeryn needed to hear his voice, she needed him to talk her through this.

"You're doing just fine, my love," David spoke quietly into her right ear as hewatched Sthilg and Heather get things ready for their arriving daughter. "Just breath like we practiced, remember?" He started to coach her in the panting exercises they had been taught.

Heather smiled and nodded as she looked at the readouts. “Readings are stabilising, just relax, let your body do what it needs to do.”

Sthilg was doing what he did best. At least the baby was coming out nicely. " I'm going to have to rotate her head. Big breathsss Baeryn. " he said as his artificial arm morphed into several delicate tendrils.

The intense pressure she felt in her lower body increased as Baeryn followed David’s suggestion. She took took quick breaths through her clenched teeth but involuntarily held them as she pushed. She knew she hadn’t been in labor more than a handful of minutes but felt a deep fatigue. When she looked up and saw Heathers reassuring smile she nodded and pushed again. She didn’t hear the cry and could still feel the baby inside her but wasn’t sure how much longer she could continue this.

Regardless of her many days of sleep Baeryn was wiped. Her grip on David’s hand loosened. Her shoulders slumped slightly. Just when she was ready to call it quits another, stronger contraction rippled through her and she sat up straighter and groaned. The baby wasn’t taking no for an answer. She wanted out now. Baeryn pushed again releasing her daughter from the safety of her own body.

David could feel their daughter's energy alter slightly, as she was finally born of Baeryn's womb. As Baeryn collapsed against his chest, his eyes were locked on the small bundle of flesh that Sthilg was holding and gently cleaning. Then, he heard the most beautiful sound in the world...the sound of their daughter's first cry as she took in her initial lungs-full of air. Tears of joy started to stream down his cheeks. "Do you hear her, Baer?! Do you gear our angel?!" He tore his eyes away from their child long enough to look at Sthilg. "How is she, Doc?!"

Baeryn smiled as she heard her baby cry. Her fear subsiding as she enjoyed this moment with David by her side.

Heather was on hand with a clean towel and a fresh blanket to wrap the little girl in once Sthilg was finished with his cursory examination. “Congratulations! She’s beautiful.”

Sthilg was busy cleaning the new born running a scan as he did so. Though judging by the smile on the lizard had on his toothy face everything had gone fine. " Ssshe'sss a perfectly healthy baby girl." He said wrapping the new born in a foil blanket before handing her to her mother.

Baeryn gingerly accepted the small bundle. Shushing the baby as she continued to cry. After a few moments the baby settled snuggling in her blanket against Baeryns chest. Baeryn pressed her lips to her new born daughters forehead, stunned by how incredibly small and fragile the infant was.

“I heard you.” she whispered referring back to the journey she had taken inside her own mind and how this small precious being is what helped bring her back to consciousness. Looking up at David her smile brightened. “She’s perfect.”

Happy tears were slowly rolling down David's cheeks as he looked down at their beautiful daughter. "Hello little one!" He chuckled softly when their baby yawned in her mother's protective embrace. "Thank you, Baer," he whispered to his mate, then he gently kissed her right temple again. "You two are the most beautiful things I have ever seen."

Baeryn couldn’t take her eyes off the little wrapped bundle in her arms. She was sore all over but was reluctant to hand her over. Then she knew she was being selfish when she saw the tears on David’s cheek in her peripheral. She looked up to David and asked, “Would you like to hold your daughter?” She slowly lifted the baby so that she was in David’s reach.

David's smile shone even brighter. Shifting his position slightly, some was sitting more behind Baeryn's left side, he took hold of the most precious thing in his universe and brought her up so he could kiss her forehead. He then took in a big breath through his nose, permanently etching her scent into his brain. "She has your beauty, Baer," he spoke softly.

Baeryn was at a loss for words. The scene before her of David holding their daughter would forever be cemented into her memory as the happiest she had ever been.

“Congratulations to both of you” Heather smiled warmly as she approached the biobed with some cold water in hand. “If you’d like to take a bath in a little while to freshen up, we can look after your little one for you.”

“Thank you Heather.” Baeryn smiled and took the nurses hand in hers, giving it a squeeze. She couldn’t even begin to express how thankful she was for her and Sthilg. “If I can pry her from David long enough for a bath I would love one.” She joked. There weren’t many people she would feel safe leaving the infant with but Heather and the doctor were definitely on the top of that list.

Hearing his name mentioned, David looked up as if pulled out of a trance. "Huh?"

Baeryn chuckled at David's innocense and distraction.

Heather grinned. “If you’d like to help Baeryn, we can take care of your daughter for you.” She smiled.

After stealing another quick glance at Samanthanna, he sighed softly then handed her over to Heather. "Okay," he replied.

Once their daughter was safely handed over, David gently pushed Baeryn forward some, so he could extricate himself from behind her. Once he was standing, he looked at both women, "What do you need me to do?"

Baeryn held out her arms wearily. She hoped a shower would not only give her a sense of cleanliness, but wake her up a bit more. "Help me up and if you would be so kind as to assist me into the bath please." She gave David as big a smile as she was able, her eyes barely staying open.

Without saying a word, David moved back in and effortlessly scooped Baeryn up into his arms. "I've got you, love," he said softly, pure love and adoration in his eyes for his bond mate.

~OFF~