Love & Other Considerations

Posted on 17 Jun 2015 @ 9:22am by Lieutenant Olsam Mott
Edited on on 17 Jun 2015 @ 7:16pm

2,059 words; about a 10 minute read

Mission: Episode 08 - NIMBUS
Location: USS Galileo Deck 3, Sickbay
Timeline: MD2 1730

ON:

The explosion had been quite unexpected and Tyrion wasn't sure whether this was due to the wargames going on, or whether there had ben a short circuit somewhere. However, to him the explosion was quite real as his console blew up in his face, throwing him backwards. His landing was awkward and he heard a sickening crack, followed first by numbness and then by throbbing pain in his left arm.

Torn between leaving his post or calling someone down to the intelligence office, Tyrion just grabbed a random officer to take over, then made his way to sickbay. His face was blackened by smoke, his skin showing signs of first or second degree burns. But those didn't seem to bother him, the Betazoid was clutching his left arm to his body, his black eyes even more obsidian with pain as he entered sickbay.

He sighed to himself as he saw only Mott; the one doctor he was actually hoping to avoid. But alas, one couldn't have everything so he approached the blue doctor, while trying to suppress a cry of pain as he moved.

Olsam spotted the intelligence officer cradling his arm and huffed a bit as he approached and pulled out a medical tricorder. "Did you hurt your arm falling all over a bunch of men?"

Tears springing in his eyes as he moved, Tyrion shook his head. "Console exploded," he breathed between hisses of pain, "I fell. Please...it hurts."

The Bolian physician eyed his patient while he loaded a hypospray with an analgesic. The device was pressed near as possible to Tyrion's carotid artery, allowing it to inject the pain reliever in a fast-acting manner. "I think the EPS grid is getting faulty or something." Olsam muttered something else as he shuffled over to another medcart to collect the osteogenic regenerator. "Be still or you'll end up with a couple of extra bones."

The Betazoid sat as still as possible, feeling the pain ebb away, though the burning sensations in his face and the throbbing in his wrist remained at a tolerable level. "Why did you say that? About men?"

Olsam huffed. "Like you don't know! I saw you in the lounge with the engineer. Or, well, I heard about it. From the crewman across the hall who heard it from his cousin's best friend. But, anyway, I know all about it! I told my brother not to get involved with you, that it would be trouble. You can't date people on starships if you're not on the same starship because there's just too much distance between people on different starships that aren't the same starship in the same place, I said. But does he listen to me? Nope. Nope. Of course not. Nobody ever listens to me! If everyone would just listen to me then think how much better the universe would be, just think about it."

"I'm sorry about your brother doctor and for what it's worth I did, and still do love him. But I've tried to contact him, several times in fact and when I get no answer then I feel it's time to move on. And it's not like I intended to fall in love with Grayson...it just happened and we, well, we connected. And he makes me feel good and I don't see anything wrong with that."

Olsam blew a huge puff of air past his lips at that statement, as if he could dismissively sweep the words away. "Love is a biochemical reaction in response to external stimuli." He continued moving the osteogenic regenerator along the length of the fracture while monitoring it with a medical tricorder in the other hand, though he did seem fairly distracted. "What do you mean you got no answer? Is he dead? Surely not. You'd think somebody would have told me."

"I got no answer doctor. I sent him several messages from the moment he left, but I never received a reply from him." Tyrion sighed, then winced. "Ow...doctor please watch what you're doing..."

"Huh? Oh. Sorry." Olsam turned his attention back to the medical matter at hand. But even as he went through the rote motions of repairing the damaged bone, he seemed to be lost in thought. Finally, he shut off the device and began taking more detailed scans with the tricorder. "Well, I don't know why he would do that. Maybe he did take my advice for once. I told him he shouldn't have anything to do with you and that your time together was a mistake. He shouldn't make it worse by keeping up the pretense that anything could possibly come from it."

"Wasn't that our choice to make doctor? And why did you tell him not to have anything to do with me? You don't know me doctor, you know nothing about me." Tyrion was visibly hurt at the statements from the Bolian doctor, even though he was currently extremely happy with Grayson.

"Because civilian-fleet relationships never work, especially when the pair aren't stationed at the same facility. It's an outright impossibility, I don't even know why he was bothering to try. And it's less to do with you and more to do with the situation," Olsam scoffed. "Besides, I know all about the sexuality inherent in Betazoid physiology and culture. It was only a matter of time. Even the best of you couldn't last that long with all these trollops prancing around the ship, wiggling their parts all over the place like a bunch of Orion slaveboys in a bordello. There is an epidemic of sexuality on this ship. A downright epidemic."

"And yet you still don't know me," Tyrion shot back, "and he's the one who didn't write back. I sent him several messages and I never got a response. I sent one even hours after he left, and he didn't respond." He sighed, shaking his head sadly. "But I've someone now, here on the ship and he makes me very happy. And he takes me as I am too, and I love him. Much like I loved your brother, I still love him but I love Grayson more."

Coming from a polygamist society the concept of loving more than one person wasn't entirely lost on him, so he didn't object as much as another person might. "I don't need to know you to know about you! I'm sure you're a perfectly lovely person. But clearly you've done something to offend my brother and couldn't be bothered to properly make amends, so you've moved on to the next thing that's come along. Are you going to break his heart, too? Poor Kot..."

"If I offended him I've no idea how. I was physically with Kot until he had to leave. You were there when he left and I was left behind. Do you have any idea how that hurt? Being left behind? I didn't meet Grayson until a few days later..."

Tyrion shook his head sadly. "Gray and I didn't meet again until the Klingon banquet, where I pulled him out of the way of a brawl. That's when he and I connected...I mean...really connected. Like two halve souls becoming one. You know?"

"No, I don't," Olsam replied, for he truly didn't know. The nuances of manipulating DNA protein synthesis? No problem. The Starfleet Medical Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Physiological Disorders & Ailments? Virtually committed to memory. There were few medical things that slipped past Dr. Olsam Mott. But love and relationships were another matter, despite his professed expertise in those arenas. "I have no idea how much it hurts being left behind. I don't put myself in those sorts of situations. I'm glad you feel like you can become one person with Lieutenant Jones, but from a medical point of view I would advise you against it."

"Not one person doctor....soulmates...two souls becoming one in a manner of speaking. Do you know the term Imzadi?"

Olsam eyed him with some level of suspicion. The whole metaphysical concept of a soul had always seemed fairly ridiculous to him, especially given the lack of empirical evidence to suggest its existence. But for the moment, he was willing to go along with the discussion, if only because he'd nearly grown three extra ulnas in the Betazoid and felt the need to be polite. "Yes, of course. The life mate or first love or something of the sort in Betazoid culture. I watched a movie about it once."

"Well...there's this bond between me and Gray...at least it feels like it. Somehow, I feel I've known him all my life." Tyrion did not watch Mott's work, instead keeping his eyes on the doctor's face for fear of passing out if he did watch.

"I'm not sure how you could have known him your whole life. I thought he was a Trill-Human hybrid? Was he born on Betazed? I suppose his father is a diplomat, right? It's possible, if not probable." Olsam finished up with the repair job and began packing things away in the medcart, not breaking for a moment to allow Tyrion to speak. "Although I don't know why you'd want to date someone you've known your entire life, that sounds dreadfully boring. Don't you know everything already? Haven't you done everything already? There's nothing new with a person like that. The same old thing, day in and day out..."

Listening to the ramble, Tyrion shook his head. "It just feels right, there's no other way I can explain it," he answered when there was a silence to answer in. "I don't know everything about him, I don't go reading people's minds in case you forgot. But he feels safe. To be with I mean, and he's very sweet and gentle and that for an engineer." He smiled almost shyly. "I'll spare you the details doctor, I'm sure you can visualize just fine."

"They say some serial killers are sweet and gentle, too. Right up until they murder you in cold blood. I watched a movie about it once. Are you sure he's not a serial killer? You can never be too careful," Olsam cautioned. "Anyway, I'll send a message to my brother and tell him to stay away from you because you've moved on to a potentially homicidal maniac. He'll probably be relieved."

"I'd rather you didn't," Tyrion said through gritted teeth, though tears were springing to his eyes. He was visibly hurt by the Bolians unkind words. "If he feels inclined to respond to anything I sent I'm sure he will. If not, then so be it...but it won't be for lack of trying on my end. I've done my best. And Grayson is not a homicidal maniac doctor, he's very sweet and I doubt he could even hurt a fly. And if you're referring to my own conviction, that's in the past and Grayson knows about it and he's not judging me for it. Kot knew too, by the way...it's not something I keep hidden...it's best to be truthful in relationships, don't you agree?"

"Yes, I agree. If I were a murderer, I would certainly tell people. It's good of you to do that," Olsam said, nodding along as if they were discussing the weather. He picked up a PADD and began filling out the necessary paperwork regarding the diagnosis and treatment. "I wish you luck, though. With Lieutenant Jones, I mean." He pressed his thumb to the PADD to sign off on the report and carelessly tossed it on top of the medcart, looking up at Tyrion with a smile. Just as quickly as he'd objected to the issue of Tyrion's new relationship, he now seemed to have embraced it. "I'm sure you'll live happily ever after, baring any incidents resulting in death or serious injury."

Tyrion nodded, surprised by the doctor's sudden change in attitude. "Barring that," he agreed. "Thank you," he added, looking down at his bandaged hand. The minor burns in his face would probably heal fine on their own though they still stung. Yet, the Betazoid said nothing.

OFF:

CPO Tyrion Faye
Intelligence Officer
USS Galileo
PNPC T'Vanna

Lieutenant Olsam Mott, M.D.
Assistant Chief Medical Officer
USS Galileo

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