Moving up the chain

Posted on Tue Feb 26th, 2019 @ 10:48pm by Commander Abigail Prescott & Lieutenant Kylean Amidok MD, PhD
Edited on on Mon Mar 11th, 2019 @ 2:30pm

3,224 words; about a 16 minute read

Mission: Mission 2: Into The Breach
Location: Captain's Lounge
Timeline: MD06 - 1800

Mint was getting frustrated with the personnel shuffle, but the end was in sight. She only had one more person to talk to about moving up and then she was done. The next thing on the list would be requesting replacement officers, but that could wait until tomorrow. She sent a message to Dr. Amidok requesting his presence in the Captain's lounge and now she sat reading reports waiting for him to arrive.

Kylean was glad to finally get a chance to meet the Commander without being covered in blood. He only had a very brief glance of the Commander during the response to the bombing, so this would be the first time meeting her. There had been rumors spreading that she was recently promoted to CO, however he was too busy dealing with casualties in the main Sickbay, he just didn't have time to inquire further. As he stopped in front of the door to the CO's office, he waited for the new CO to allow him entry. He somehow felt like a child being summoned to the Principal's office with no clue why he was ordered to report there. Once he entered, he did as he was accustomed to doing anytime he was to meet with his superior officers. He snapped to attention and said, "Lieutenant Doctor Kylean Amidok reporting as ordered, sir!"

"Have a seat, Doctor," Mint gestured to the chairs in front of her desk, barely looking up when he walked in. "I know you're probably curious as to why I've called you here," she said, finally closing the report she'd been reading and giving him her full attention. "I'm not sure if your department has been notified, but Doctor Aereen has been transferred out."

Kylean looked a bit shocked by the news. He hadn't anticipated a change in staff, and no one in the Medical Department had shared any scuttle of one being forthcoming. "No, sir," he responded sincerely. He was able to keep himself from probing her mind, but couldn't completely shrug of the Commander's emotions. He could feel conflict, but wasn't sure if it was because of something Amidok himself had done, or if it was due to the sudden departure of losing a CMO amid all the other chaos. "I mean, I noticed the doctor hadn't shown up for duty this morning, but being new to the base, I really haven't gotten to know the habits of any of the base personnel quite yet." Suddenly he wondered if Mint may have thought he had used his telepathic abilities to read or probe her thoughts, as he felt a shift in her mental demeanor.

He had a lot of questions he wanted to ask. For example, he wanted to know how the Marines who were sent to other starbases to convalesce were doing. He wanted to know how the command staff were personally dealing with the tragedy (while he was not a counselor, he obviously had some training in the subject). It wasn't as if it took an empath to see the visible cues people gave off when they were grieving, but this Commander wasn't really giving up any clues, and for a fleeting moment, he almost let down his guard to probe her thoughts. He instantly felt ashamed, and worried he may have given off his own non-verbal cues the Commander might have picked up on.

Before she could tell him if she had, he spoke up. "Sir, I am sure you are fully aware I'm a Betazoid. I have practiced very hard over my life to block out the thoughts of others until or unless they gave me permission to read them, or if I was given a direct order to do so to establish contact with any unknown species or for people who are injured and can't otherwise give a conscious consent. I feel bound to report, for a very brief moment, I just now almost probed your thoughts. Even I have been impacted by the overwhelming circumstances over the past few days. I will immediately seek an appointment with a counselor to help with my own needs, but I thought it important to let you know it almost happened. I promise you I would never intentionally probe your mind without your permission, sir." It was only after he made the confession, he took a seat as he was requested to, and waited patiently for her response. He'd understand if she'd respond passionately in haste, having just arrived very recently, he had no way of knowing how she'd respond to such jarring news.

Raising an eyebrow, Mint simply nodded as Amidok spoke. "Thank you for reporting that and for not probing my mind," she said, a small smile growing over her face. "I'm sure it wouldn't be a pleasant place for you to be right now, it's a jungle of thoughts and worries," she sighed and leaned back. "Doctor Aereen's departure happened quite quickly, I'm sure she didn't have time to notify the department she was leaving. Now, this leaves us with a rather large hole in Medical. Doctor Aereen didn't have an assistant that could move up, and you are the most senior medical officer. So, I would like to offer you the position of Chief Medical Officer, if you want it."

Kylean felt taken aback by the proposal, and was sure his face showed it this time. "I came here to head the research laboratory once the new civilian hospital was finished, but I'm most definitely capable of directing the department in the mean time," he said as calmly as he could. "However, I'm sure the recent bombing may definitely delay the advancement of the venture between Starfleet medical and the local doctors with the civilian hospital. I'll accept the position, but I think it's very important that you know I'm not the exactly the best surgeon in the galaxy. If you caught a contagion no one had seen before, I'd be your man, but if you need a heart replacement, I'd most definitely suggest either a referral to a specialist, or the appropriate holo-doctor instead."

"We can't all be the best at everything," Mint said with a laugh. "I don't need you to be the best surgeon, I need you to be the best doctor you can be," she said shaking her head. "We can get surgeons in, well, if Starfleet releases more resources to the area. I'm glad you're willing to step up. Being a department head isn't easy, but I believe it is something we should all at least try once in our careers. If you need anything, my door is always open."

"Sir," he said using the official vernacular for Prescott's position, "I appreciate that. I will do the best I can over the next few days to get things sorted out, get a good count of what I have personnel wise, and get them assigned as teams in the best capacity they can be used, but..," he stopped and looked Prescott seriously in the eye, "I wasn't joking a bit ago. I need to see a counselor. It doesn't take a specialist to know when someone is starting to feel the effects of PTSD, and as an empath, if I don't start getting some of this stuff off my chest and out of my mind, I could very well go out of my mind. Sir, would you have any issues with me seeing Lieutenant Kincaid instead of Doctor Bennett? I think it might be easier to deal with all of this by working with a fellow empath. I hope you'll concur so I can make an immediate appointment with the counselor."

"I have one small issue with you seeing Lieutenant Kincaid, but that is more on him than on you," Mint said. But then she seemed to get an idea. "Actually, maybe you could assist Mister Kincaid as much as he could assist you. Yes, I will clear you seeing him instead and send a note to Doctor Bennett about it. I will let Kincaid explain the situation to you, however, as it's not my place to tell you. I must say I am happy to hear that you are so willing to deal with your mental health, not many would take initiative with these matters. There still seems to be a stigma around mental health, for some reason."

"As a Betazoid, I know all too well the importance of good mental health. In my line of work, a bad day at the office doesn't just mean it was a long day and I didn't enjoy it. When we doctors have a bad day, someone can die." He stopped and pondered whether or not to confess to the Commander what he'd been holding in for so long. He had a feeling Prescott knew something serious was up, which was why he suspected she said what she did about mental health. "Sir, my need to see a counselor isn't really about what happened on that landing platform, although it didn't help matters. If anything, it helped the true disaster surface." Finally, he decided to come clean. "I think it'll be easier to explain it to you than it would to a counselor, and I believe you have the right to know."

He leaned ever so slightly toward the Commander and started, "A long time ago, I mean a decade ago, give or take a few years, I was working on a research team that was dispatched to Thesia V for a low level outbreak of a mysterious virus. By the time it took us to isolate the bug, find a patient with the original strain but showed no signs of illness, take their blood to search for antibodies," he sighed loudly. "Anyway, it didn't take long to find someone exactly like we needed. He just happened to be one of the local doctors. Anyway, only around 100 people died in that incident, the next one wouldn't be so lucky. Anterra VII. Out on the outer rim of the Beta Quadrant, and clear across the territory of the Federation from Thesia V.

Anyway, it took us about 48 hours to isolate the cause of the outbreak of yet another mystery illness which pretty much tore up the entire immune system, and stuck it with a very bad flu. The Thesian flu. It was genetically identical to the Thesian flu we encountered many years before. We had the antibodies, the antidote and the vaccine for the Thesian flu, and we followed protocols on administering it to the Anterrans, since their immune systems were not use to fighting off such a foreign invader. For you and I, the Thesian flu may put us down for a day or two with a mild sense of lethargy and a runny nose. For the Anterrans, it eventually meant death. Not just death, but an agonizing death which no medication we had could control.

"It was either euthanasia, or watch them suffer. Of course euthanasia was out of the question, so we watched, helplessly as one by one almost 80,000 people died from our treatment before I could find what was causing the reaction amongst the Anterrans and finally end the dying. 80,000 people, Commander. No, I wasn't the only doctor responsible for giving the Anterrans the antidote and/or vaccine, but I was the one that isolated the protein used to bind the synthetic virus which was the cause of the pandemic. A simple protein which you and I could eat or drink, and digest quite easily, but it was a violent poison for the Anterrans. They suffered greatly for around 20 to 30 minutes before death showed mercy to take them away from their hell. Anyway, like I said, I need to talk to a counselor. There's a lot more. A lot more. I may be out of commission for a couple of days, but I'll be fine to take over as CMO, thought I may need just a little time off in between now and then.

Frowning at the story, Mint leaned back in her chair and sighed. "I'm sure you were just doing your best with what information you had. However, I do agree with your need for counselling. I hope it doesn't take away from your ability to be a doctor for too long, we're in desperate need of good doctors right now." She tilted her head to the side slightly and smiled. "And if you could request an obstetrician with both Human and Orion knowledge, it would be appreciated," she said cheekily. "I'm sure you're not aware of this, but I am pregnant. Doctor Aereen guestimated a seven month gestation, since I am half Orion and not much is known about my particular hybrid reproductive cycles and gestation, she had to go off what she knows of both Human and Orion gestation. I am currently two weeks and thankfully the nausea that started up five or so days ago is leveling off to mornings and scent induced."

A sincere smile crossed Kylean's face, "My greatest congratulations, Commander. It's been a while since I delivered a baby, but if you'd prefer a specialist, I'll certainly refer you to one. Think it over. I'll need to know if you'd prefer a male or female, and whether you'd prefer a Starfleet doctor, or one from Faltan." He leaned back in his seat contemplating how to respond to the rest of it. It wasn't as easy as just saying, 'I will get past this,' as his first inclination was to bury it within like he always did. Always holding it in, and never dealing with it. "I have asked for some temporary support from the medical staff on the Farragut until I'm well enough to completely take over. I'll still be seeing patients on a limited basis, pretty much just changing bandages and monitoring vital signs. Nothing too stressful. Besides, I'll be contacting Lt Kincaid just as soon as we are done here to try to see him as soon as possible. That is, if he will consent to take me on as a patient. He may be wary of taking on another Betazoid as a patient. Especially a Betazoid doctor."

"I was just teasing about the specialist, I'm sure you'll be fine," Mint said before chuckling. "As for the rest, I do hope you can come to a place of peace with your past. It's easier said than done, I know. However, it is my wish for everyone to have happiness in their lives." She gave a half smile and shrugged. "All I ask is that you do your best to perform your duties as Chief Medical Officer. And please keep me in the loop regarding when you will be back at full duties. I hope it's a smooth transition for you, though with the current lack of staff, I know it will be somewhat stressful for the next little while. To aid in this, however, I am asking any Marine medics to assist in medical, and I'm compiling a list of personnel we need. Please take a look at your roster as soon as you can and forward a list of any specialists or specific personnel you require."

"Well, sir, I know it's either fate or a very lucky happenstance, but the Farragut is loaded to bear with medical staff, either those headed to their new assigned starbases or ships, or those coming back from one. With Admiral Chadwick here on the planet, it was about to depart once it had finished treating the last of the patients we sent to them, but we managed to catch them just in time. They have about 200 doctors, nurses and medics available, and this morning I was told by one of Admiral Chadwick's diplomatic aides, we've been given priority status due to our emergent needs. At least that's one less thing to worry about. I've already asked for at least 20 doctors, especially surgeons, about 10 nurses and 15 medics. Once their transfer orders are complete on the Farragut side, Captain Danner should send you the roster for your consideration." He stood, as if ready to leave so he could try to book an appointment with Lieutenant Kincaid, one he was hoping he might even be able to get that same day. He would be lucky in getting that appointment, coincidentally just as soon as he was finished with the Commander. Apparently one patient had to change their appointment date, and the second was one of the injured personnel from the bombing, and was off-planet for treatment. "If you think we need more, Doctor Mathers is standing by to receive the request, whether it comes from you or me."

"I will go with what you deem necessary," Mint said, also standing and holding her hand out to the man. "Congratulations Doctor, I do hope everything calms down on the station and we can get back to a relatively normal time of peace."

"Obviously, Commander, that makes two of us," he responded while shaking her hand. "I hope we can maintain that peace as well, although if the bombing investigation ends with a determination of sabotage, potentially from a faction from the Faltanians, it may not be the last we hear of them. I just hope the diplomatic, intelligence and security efforts can bear some fruit before any more innocent lives are lost. Oh, you may find this interesting. There were two critically wounded people beamed directly to the Farragut, having both been impaled by the same piece of bulkhead. One a Kingon, the other one of our base staff. Both were able to be successfully treated for their injuries, although the Klingon gave some of the Farragut staff a real hard time, as she wanted to get back to work immediately, I believe in the hopes of being able to retaliate against the 'cowards who tried to blow up our ship,'" he mimed with air quotes.

"I'm sure she was looking to retaliate," Mint agreed with a chuckle. "Go sort out the things you need to, and get comfortable in your new office. Good day, Doctor."

"Thank you, sir," he said as he headed to the door. "I hope not to let you down. I just hope you will be patient with me as I go through the counseling sessions I desperately need. I really don't think I can overstate the situation enough. Mr Kincaid will have his work cut out for him, no thanks to me," he held up the PADD with the lists of things the Commander wanted accomplished. "I will sort out the most important parts of this list first, including contacting the Farragut to send us stand-ins, until permanent replacement personnel can be requisitioned from Starfleet Medical." He gave a final nod to the Commander and exited the office. Once the doors closed behind him, Kylean let out an audible sigh and leaned his forehead against a wall. "What have you done, Kylean?" he whispered. 'No sense delaying this any longer,' he thought. Looking down at his left hand holding the PADD, he noticed it shaking, no, not shaking... it was a tremor. Silently he shook his head back and forth in disgust. He waited a moment to gather himself, then pressed his comm badge to try to make an appointment with Lt Kincaid.

 

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