Watching and Waiting, Part 1"

Posted on Wed Apr 1st, 2020 @ 9:27am by Lieutenant Tate Sullivan Ph.D. & Captain Gary Taylor & Lieutenant JG Gallia Norris & Commander Sthilg & Lieutenant Colonel Azhul Naxea & Commander Arrianna Salannis an Vantar & Lieutenant Commander Alicia Kelea-Salik & Lieutenant Commander S'hib & Captain Garrett Lovejoy [ Taylor] & Lieutenant Commander Savar cha'Salik hei-Surak Talek-sen-deen [Taylor] & Lieutenant Scott Gregory [Taylor] & Lieutenant M'Tuuri Sh'iss [S'hib] & Lieutenant JG T'Kek [Naxea] & Chief Warrant Officer Man'darr [Naxea] & Senior Chief Petty Officer Fernando De La Rosa [Taylor] & Lieutenant JG Heather De La Rosa {Kelea-Salik} & Private 1st Class Durak & Riov S’Tokkr tr’Noramei

Mission: INTERMISSION: Rebuild, Reuse, Recycle
Location: Various
Timeline: Simultaneous with current rescue efforts
2068 words - 4.1 OF Standard Post Measure

***Main Infirmary***

These were the times that were hardest for Tate...the moments spent watching and waiting, anticipating seeing people hurt and traumatized, needing help immediately. She'd had enough emergency medical training to know how to triage and to respond effectively and efficiently once the chaos began, but these moments of anticipation, adrenaline coursing through her like a spring, these were the moments that were maddening.

Tallia watched the Counselor, Sullivan she thought, from a distance. The woman was as tight as a watch spring and looked like she might snap momentarily, "Lieutenant, you okay?" She asked, stepping slightly closer, but not close enough to encroach on the other woman's space.

If there was one thing Maddy hated about being a counselor it was infirmary duty, it was almost invariably overwhelming for her, but, everyone else had to do it, so she would bear it without complaint. She walked in and saw Tate Sullivan there, Tate who used to run the place, if she could pull ID without issue, so could Maddy. She walked over as close as she felt would be comfortable to Tate and smiled, "Tate, how are you?"

Turning to both Tallia and Maddy, she smiled with a touch of chagrin, realizing her own taut anxiety was not as well hidden as she might have thought. "I'm fine, just a bit anxious to hear any updates on our people. Any word?"

Shaking heads were only response. Time would tell she supposed.

Ensign T'Kek walked out of the medical supply storage with PaDD in hand. "All likely required medical supplies are ready for dispersion," he stated as the approached the group of women.

Maddy turned and looked hard at T'Kek, taking the dishy Vulcan in as though she'd never seen a man before, "That's awesome, T'Kek." She replied, "Is there anything I can do to help?"

"Down girl." Tallia sighed, not wanting to simply sit there and watch while Maddy made an ass of herself, "Though, is there anything else you need, Ensign?"

T'Kek cast a small grin at Maddy. "No, not the moment, but thank you, Doctor Strode. It appears we are as ready as we'll ever be."

Fernando be bopped in from Engineering once it was clear the ship was out of danger and that the wounded would be beaming back to Sickbay. Some one needed to be here to preserve some sense of order. Seeing Sullivan, Tallia, Mandy and T'kek, he spoke "Hi Tallia and everyone else. Just thought I would come and see if you need any help in security once the prisoners and any wounded are beamed back." Just then Lia's voice cam over his combadge. "Holmes to De La Rosa. Report to the brig. Prisoners Incoming." Fernado sighed and replied, "I am on my way Commander." With that he turned back to Tallia and the others, "Parting is such sweet sorrow but alas my services are needed elsewhere. Until later." With a wave of his hand he turned and headed for the brig.

There was a grunt and the sound of the sliding doors as the chief MD hauled an emergency bio replicator out of storage and placed it near one of the beds laid out for incoming casualties. With his current condition he couldn't perform and surgeries, but he could make sure everything would go smoothly for the team performing it.

A moment later the computer's voice came over the comm in Sickbay. "Standby. Incoming patients."

The forms of Major Azhul Naxea, Lieutenant S'hib, Dr. Nevada McKay and four Marines materialized in sickbay.


Tate appreciated the way the crew had come together to offer assistance, even going so far as to make sure she was okay. She also could appreciate the light banter to break up the tension. The ship was large and the crew was diverse, but they were a family. The thought only intensified her desire to save those currently in such grave trouble.

She exhaled a sigh of relief as the transporter released the very people in her thoughts into their care. Her eyes immediately began to scan the new arrivals, trying to assess the severity of their injuries, but even as she did so, she rushed forward, her tricorder already open and scanning.

The sudden bright lights of sickbay startled the tired and terrified Sequus, thinking it was nothing more than another mind game being played on him by the witch in his head. "Stay away..." S'hib snorted while walking backwards on unsteady hooves, his naked body still covered in dirt and dried blood, discolouring his once beautiful white coat. "This isn't real, it's not real..." He repeated, stumbling into the side of a biobed with his hands clutching his head.

Maddy instantly recognized Lt. S'hib, not only because he was every Sequess that she knew but because of his closeness with Taya, she had to help him for her sake, "Lt. S'hib, let me help you, please." She offered, "I'm supposed to babysit Taya tonight and I know I won't be able to look her in her eyes if I don't do everything I can for you. She'll know."

"Tay?." S'hib whined painfully, disorientated by his surroundings and the blinding light of sickbay. "No, no no... you're in my head again..." He grovelled, moving further away from everyone in a panic, still able to smell the reek of the hood he had been forced to wear on his matted hair.

His anxiety was in full swing as he backed into a wall, his hands wrapped around his chest as he slid to the floor and fell to his side, unable to figure out what was real anymore. "Why won't you leave me alone..." He wept, dragging his long spindly legs in amongst the two biobeds.

"Lieutenant, it's me, Ensign Masters, Maddy." She continued, "You're safe here, it's fine. Please, let me help you."

S'hib didn't reply, instead choosing to close his tired eyes with whatever strength he had left, hoping that maybe everything would go away.

"Okay, you're back on Elysium, you're safe." Maddy reassured him, "You're in sickbay and nobody can get here to hurt you. I give you my word on that." She began to scan the area for things to use as improvised weapons to enforce that promise, a trick she'd learned in Gunny's survival course, her eyes falling on a laser scalpel, that would be just fine.

S'hib slowly opened his eyes, catching view of the scalpel in her hand and sending him into a fit of panic-induced hysteria, screaming incoherently about taking his organs as he tried to lash out with his hooves, barely sliding them across the floor at whoever was looming over him.

"No, no organ harvesting!" Maddy promised, "Just getting something we can defend ourselves with if worse comes to worse. Improvised weapon, just like Gunny Rhodes says in his survival course."

Heather had beamed up with the wounded marines, her jacket was anything but the colour it had been when she went down to the surface though luckily for her none of the blood on her clothing was hers. She helped to move the wounded to biobeds before seeing what was going on with S'hib, removing her jacket she put it and her things aside before moving across to see if she could help. She'd been in S'hib's place, been a slave and she understood how he felt. "I might be able to help" She looked at Masters hoping she'd accept her help.

"Go ahead." Maddy smiled, happy for the assist, "He's not responsive to standard techniques, so maybe you know something I don't."

(Who wants Tate's help? :-))

Sthilg had been helping one of the wounded marines onto the biobed, though his ears still heard the Sequus panicked speech. Giving the signal to one of his staff to get the tr100 with hypospray capsules the gorn observed the situation closely. Adding the giant reptile to this situation was not going to make things better.

"Leave him alone!" Naxea screamed as she threw off a nurse that had been attending to her despite the pain in her battered body and made her way to him. "S'hib!" she called, "Look at me. It's ok."

Heather was watching their interaction with interest, she'd seen it before when she'd fallen in love during her time as a slave. "It's okay, I can help too." Heather looked at Naxea. "I was a slave too, until Lieutenant De La Rosa saved me." She turned to S'hib. "It's okay..." She took a small step closer hands raised so he could see she wasn't holding anything. "You're aboard the ship now, you're safe... I won't hurt you, none of us will."

T'Kek appraoched Naxea gently. "Major Azhul? Please have a seat on the biobed, please so we can tend to you," he placed a hand gently on her shoulder.

The touch sent Naxea off as she grabbed T'Kek's hand twisted and delivered a blow to the side of his head, sending him stumbling back. "Don't touch me!"

The blow dazed T'Kek for a moment, thankful for being Vulcan because had he not, he was sure the blow would have floored him as he stood, rubbing his wrist and shaking his head slightly.

"Wait! Stop!!" Heather was starting to feel like she needed to be split in two. "Do you have any idea what they've been through?! She looked between S'Hib and Naxea. "They've been through hell... Literally hell. Do you know what they do to slaves!! You're humiliated and tortured, again and again and again. Then just when you think it's reached its worst its gets even worse!!!" She had tears in her eyes as she looked everyone gathered. "You are used, abused and never given a chance to rest! It's hell and it makes you wish you were dead."

Commander Vaii walked in. "Counselor, how much staff do you have? Because we have at least two dozen more emancipated slaves coming in on transport shuttles. And at least half of them have been sedated, they tried to resist... violently. Goddesses, I wish I could line those Orion bastards up and have them shot."

Heather took a deep breath and wiped her eyes before turning back to S'Hib right now he was in need of help and she intended to help him. "Please... Let me help you." She reached out a gentle hand as she approached ever closer to S'Hib.

Going into a state of shock S'hib said nothing, simply withdrawing further away and staring at the floor, refusing to acknowledge that this might possibly be real in case it was violently ripped away like before.

Thinking of the relative peace only moments before and how anxious Tate had been to see things move forward, she was reminded to be careful what she wished for. Taking a deep breath, she knew she needed to help bring order to the situation. She wasn't a fully trained physician or nurse or part of the infirmary's command chain, but under the circumstances, this was a psychological crisis and therefore her purview. Better to ask for forgiveness than permission.

Turning to Commander Vaii, she wondered if any of the previous activity had been observed by the Commander. She hoped not. "All people whose designated emergency stations are the infirmary are making their way here, Commander. We'll be ready."

Approaching the group surrounding S'hib, she stated quietly but firmly, "I know you all want to help him and the rest of our people, but remember, the usual protocols for treating the traumatized apply here. Ask permission before approaching and explain what you're doing to those who appear lucid and whose injuries aren't life-threatening. If you aren't sure whether injuries are life-threatening because you can't get a proper assessment or patients aren't lucid, administer the mildest sedative that you deem safe to accomplish that goal. Begging patients to cooperate while they could be in dire need doesn't get their lives saved. Document everything. These are crime survivors. Understood?"

Leaning over to speak to Heather so only she could hear, Tate said, "Head to the office and take ten. I'll be in to check on you shortly." There was no need to point out her outburst wasn't helpful wouldn't accomplish anything. She hoped the gentle but firm suggestion would.

Heather nodded. "Of course... I'm sorry." She took one last look at S'Hib before moving off to the office.

***TBC***