Flesh Wound (Part 2 of 2)

Posted on 25 Oct 2024 @ 11:38pm by Chief Warrant Officer 3 Lamar Darius & EMH Mark X-C "Shirley" & Ensign S'Ers-a M'Lyr'Zor

2,416 words; about a 12 minute read

Mission: Episode 20 - Reconstruction
Location: USS Galileo-A - Deck 3, Sickbay
Timeline: MD 05, 1616 hrs

Previously, on Flesh Wound (Part 1)...

“I accept your terms.” Sera responded as they made their way down the corridor to sickbay. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, wondering why he felt the need to accompany her. It would have been no hardship, truly, to have collected her tools–and the casing–and come here afterwards, but Lamar had been rather insistent. It might also have been that she didn’t want to argue with him, didn’t want to do anything to further rouse his ire towards her, really. And it might have been nice–at least for the moment–to have been treated with such concern. Not that she was getting the wrong idea from it. Not at all.

And Now, the Conclusion...

[ON]

The entrance to the ship's small and compact medical bay hissed open then closed behind the two of them, revealing a very bright and sterile-scented atmosphere which always seemed to make Lamar uneasy. Maybe it was the result of a culture of machismo instilled into him during his time in the Corps, or the fact that no one ever willingly came into sickbay unless something was wrong. A brief flash of reminiscence from laying atop one of the biobeds under sedation next to Ullswater resurfaced before he pushed that dark moment away then looked around the vacant room. "I don't think anyone's home..." he muttered to Sera.

Sera tilted her head and listened more carefully, but her sensitive hearing didn’t pick up anyone other than the human standing next to her. “I can come back later if the department is unstaffed. It is a minor injury, Chief.” Besides, if she were honest with herself, suppressing the physical discomfort from her hand did occupy enough of her mental bandwidth that she was able to ignore the ongoing internal turmoil. Being on a ship this small made avoidance quite a challenge, she was discovering.

"Sickbay's never unstaffed." She wasn't going to get out this that easily. As much private responsibility he acknowledged he was responsible for, she also needed to be responsible and not exacerbate her injury. "Computer, activate EMH," he ordered.

A nearby shimmer of holographic particles materialized and within less than a second, the photonic red-headed doctor - affectionately named 'Shirley' by the ship's prior medical staff - stood several meters from the Vulcan and Human. "Please state the nature of the medical emergency." The words were spoken with a female cadence yet also possessed an underlying familiarity with all of the other fleet-wide Mark X models.

A subtle shift in her brow was the other only outward response she made to Lamar. The EMH was generally used in emergencies, was it not? This did not appear to be a most efficient use of resources given it was just her hand. She had endured far worse physical injury than this. Cue internal sigh.

“It is not an emergency.” Sera responded calmly. “I have suffered a minor crush injury attempting to remove a warp coil casing. It is uncomfortable, but my current pain is tolerable. Chief Darius insisted I come here to be seen immediately, however..”

Shirley stepped forward into motion, her average height and female physique several inches shorter than both of the visitors whole she maneuvered around them to procure a medical tricorder. "I've already been summoned so whether or not this is an emergency is irrelevant." Her tonality grated slightly upon the ears, more so a result of her initiating reprimand. "No crushing injuries are minor, despite your Vulcan biology. I assume you're experiencing significant pain? Show me your injury."

Still standing next to Sera, Lamar shifted his hip into her with a gentle nudge to prompt her to comply and not argue. "I think her finger's broken," he then added with the assumption his expert diagnosis would be helpful.

Sera rolled her eyes at Lamar in an obviously un-vulcan-like manner–but perhaps more in a Lamar-like manner–before extending her right hand for the EMH. There had to be a better use of her time, assuredly, then to be here complaining about a minor hand injury.

In the time from her injury to presentation in sick bay, her hand was unrecognizable from its pre-injury state. It was swollen and bruised, and there was a livid mark transecting the top of her hand involving the metacarpal joint where her index and middle finger met her hand proper. “My controls are adequate to manage the pain I am experiencing. It is not significant. However, if analgesia is part of a required protocol for treatment, then I will comply, if for nothing else, to expedite this encounter.”

Shirley huffed when she observed the growing wound area, emoting a judgemental expression. "You need more than just painkillers, ensign." She took the offered, swollen hand then meticulously scanned it with the small probe she'd unclasped from the head of the medical tricorder. Soft audible whirls sounded for half a minute while the EMH proceeded to wave it from the woman's head down to her waist before returning the instrument to its casing then collapsing the tricorder with a click. "Full fracture of both metacarpal joints in your index and middle fingers and hairline fractures within your trapezoid and capitate. I also detect trauma within several of your extensor tendons. How did this occur?"

"A mag-lock released in an unexpected manner during maintenance of Virginia. My hand was temporarily crushed between the casing and the decking." Sera did not elaborate further. Additional contextual details were not the EMH's business. Her hand was begging to throb. Perhaps it was fortuitous that Lamar was adamant she report to sickbay. "Your concern has been noted."

"Hmm." The photonic doctor pursed her lips with disapproval then gestured for the engineer to move to one of the three main treatment platforms. "Have a seat on the biobed. Your heart rate and endorphin levels are also unusually high. In Vulcans this would usually suggest sexual arousal or extreme anxiety, but...I don't have enough available data from you to compare with any baseline levels." Shirley moved to the nearby secured medical cabinet to procure two new healing instruments. "Are you experiencing sexual frustration, by any chance?" The nonchalant manner in which she queried was uncanny yet typical for her program.

"Detailed physical evaluation is not required, EMH. I decline to answer your inquiry. It is irrelevant to my hand injury." Sera replied, her expression shifting to something that looked mildly scandalized. She didn't know what to look at, feeling her cheeks flush irrespective of her wishes.

The doctor's voice replied in a light and unconcerned tone, "As you wish. I was merely attempting to create conversation. Given Warrant Darius' presence with you here for such a minor injury, I assumed the two of you were...are engaging in interpersonal relations. The amount of Human semenal remnants in your womb indicates as much." Shirley moved next to the yellow-collared ensign then began to wave her osteo-regenerator over the Vulcan's hand. "Hold your hand still."

Meanwhile, Lamar bashfully glanced away and stepped to the side in an attempt to become invisible. The EMH's programming had a knack for intrusive questioning and he remembered Sera's previous desire to maintain confidentiality regarding their relationship. Or whatever it was they could now call it.

Sera might have made a choking sound in response to the EMH's casual verbalization of very private information, but managed to keep the aforementioned hand still. "Were." Sera amended in a pointed manner. "And this is not an acceptable topic for casual conversation for a Vulcan, EMH. It is frankly...distressing."

"My apologies. Sharing acute medical observations is the only form of socialization I receive these days. My matrix is rarely activated and this is...all I've been programmed for." Shirley performed her work in subsequent silence. Several minutes passed before she finished her initial task then procured a new instrument, a protoplaser which she ran across the top of Sera's hand. The bulging green-blooded swelling within the engineer's digits had subsided and soon faded, revealing a freshly-healed set of fingers. "Test your digits. Are you still feeling discomfort?"

Sera obeyed the directive and moved her hand and fingers. They felt stiff and ungainly, but the throbbing pain had abated for the most part. "It is tolerable. Your services are acknowledged. Is there anything further required at this time?" It had taken that long for her to finally accumulate the 'strength' to hazard at glance to Lamar. He had stepped almost completely outside of her field of view.

The EMH stepped back from the biobed, her work complete. For now. "I've treated your injury and you've expressed no additional medical concerns. I'm a doctor, not a telepath." She folded her arms across her bosom then let out a satisfied huff.

The words were barely out of the EMH's 'mouth,' when Sera hopped off the biobed to escape sickbay. Again, her gaze sought out Lamar's...it felt...necessary. It was not necessary! His words echoed in her mind, and again the peculiar squeezing discomfort manifested over her heart. The pain of her hand injury was far preferred than this renewed sensation.

I don't want you here and you don't want to be around me. Oh. This again? She really had thought this had been reconciled during her meditation. This...exploration had failed, had it not?

"I have taken time from your duties, Chief. I do not wish to inconvenience you any further. I will return to the shuttlebay to retrieve my equipment and the casing, and will return tomorrow during second shift. Will that be acceptable?" It wasn't acceptable to her. It was the opposite of acceptable. She felt strangely empty..unsettled...imbalanced. Was this why Vulcans did not engage in 'casual' relationships? Further details would have been appreciated during initial cautioning.

Once more the uncanny swiftness of Vulcan biology was on display when she expertly removed herself from the medical bed and briefly glanced to him. What was she saying she was going to do? Keep performing his work for him? After everything that'd just happened? He frowned with outward disapproval before looking over to the lingering holographic doctor. "Thanks, Shirley. Computer, deactivate EMH." A light shimmer in the air dematerialized the photonic officer leaving him alone with Sera once again.

"You're not going back to the shuttlebay tomorrow...not unsupervised without me. I can't have you hurt yourself again. We'll do it together. If you want."

Sera stopped and turned to regard Lamar with a raised brow. "I am the ChEng, Chief Darius. I do not require...supervision. I have suffered far worse than a broken hand performing my duties." It might have been said with a little more intensity than she was used to expressing, but surely the cause was sufficient?

"I was only attempting to expedite this so that there would be no further need for interaction between us. I do not understand why you would...desire to perform this assignment with myself in attendance. You were quite clear in your preference regarding my presence. Your behavior continues to confound me."

Her veto of his offer was spoken sharply which caught him off-guard compared to her usually measured inflection. "Yeah, I said that a couple days ago. That's how I was feeling at the time. But now I'd rather help you than see you get hurt again. Besides, weren't you quite clear, too, that you'd escalate the shuttle maintenance up the CoC? Shouldn't your own behavior confound you, then?"

Sera admitted it readily. "Yes. My own behavior has been quite aberrant. I do not deny that. However, I explained my rationale as to why I failed to adhere to said regulations. Why, would you rather I be a 'good' officer, Lamar?"

"As opposed to what? A 'bad' officer?" He had no idea what sort of reaction her comment was supposed to elicit but it frustrated him. "ChEng or engineer's mate, you need help because you just hurt yourself trying to do this task on your own. That's logical, right?"

Logical? No. None of this was 'logical,' but she didn't want to confront Lamar any further. "Your concern is noted." That it was a task she shouldn't have had to do was not pointed out. There did not appear to be any outcome that was not him assist or them engaging in yet another acrimonious confrontation. The path of least resistance was preferable. "You may assist me since you feel so compelled."

"Alright then...let's say 2300 before our shifts." He wasn't sure if this was a great idea - to put himself in proximity to her again for extended time while they worked on the support craft - but he didn't want to live with any more guilt if she suffered another accident which would be entirely preventable with a second set of hands.

This was a terrible idea. It was not logical to continue close contact, if the desired outcome was...well no outcome. Although his words had affected her deeply--or at least the non-logical part that craved further proximity--his rejection had been prudent. Their short-lived companionship was dangerous and her Vulcan veneer of detached control wavered around Lamar. He could not possibly understand the scope of the consequences involved with any further...entanglements between them.

And yet, the best laid plans..."2300 would be acceptable."

He glanced at her attractive features which seemed unsettled somehow. He wasn't a telepath and couldn't read her mind, but in a strange way he longed to experience another mind joining so he could understand what she was feeling. "I'll, uh, see you then I guess." He awkwardly gesticulated a half-wave then made his way to sickbay's exit door.

"Yes." Sera replied softly with an unblinking stare. Why did she seem to be utterly unable to act in a manner that was logical around this particular human male? 2300...was this be considered a 'date?' She did not know how to respond to his hand gesture but Lamar did not appear to require anything further as he turned immediately after it and left sickbay.

[OFF]

--

Ensign S'Ers-a M'Lyr'Zor
Chief Engineer
USS Galileo-A

&

CWO3 Lamar Darius
Conn Officer
USS Galileo-A
[PNPC Tarin]

&

EMH Mark X-C "Shirley"
Medical Officer
USS Galileo-A
[PNPC Tarin]

RSS Feed