Ensign Drex - This can lead to a new perspective

[Gogigobo Fairhug]

Love the introspective narrative in this sim from @Drex0379.

 

((Hospital Deck 120, Lightside Station))

 

Thanks to the intervention of the Talarian doctor, the unexpected detention of the three Starfleet officers lasted only a few minutes. A few minutes enough to make it clear, at least to Drex, that the station's crew must not have thought very highly of the Federation or Starfleet, or at least that they were doing fine on their own and did not welcome their visits.

 

As their guide led the way to a more private office, Drex decided to let the lieutenants do the talking. And he was glad when the conversation shifted from himself to the hospital's capabilities and the teams working there.

 

Samar: We’ve got just enough to cover the needs of the station’s usual population, although the hospital staff are often short-handed during busier times.  You know how it is.

 

Raimor: I’m sure that it takes a lot of work to get that many scientists pulling in the same direction.

 

Drex followed the three doctors keeping in the rear, a couple of steps behind them. He focused on the Talarian woman, wondering, in curiosity, how she managed to become the Chief Geneticist on the Spike. Was something she fought for herself or was her father who moved away from the tradition giving the daughter the opportunity to improve her condition and success? Either case, Drex was sure she would not be able to return to her homeworld and adapt back to the limitations her culture imposed on females.

 

Vahin: Please lead the way. I must say, your facilities here are quite impressive.

 

Samar simply shrugged and continued to lead the group down the corridors.

 

Raimor: Hopefully, we will have everything that we need.

 

Lost in his thoughts about Talarians, Drex was putting little attention to the talking, but he gazed at Raimor a little bit in confusion. Were they going to use the station facilities to work on the anti-toxin?

 

They moved through the administration wing. There were a lot of staff about as usual, but they all seemed far to busy with their own concerns to pay them any attention.

 

Vahin: I wasn’t expecting to find a geneticist here. I assumed this was just a hospital for treating the station’s population. Is a lot of research carried out on Lightside Station?

 

Samar: You’d be surprised.  

 

Raimor: What are you working on right now, if you don’t mind me asking? It looks like your staff is quite busy at the moment. The unusual reaction to our arrival causes me to wonder…

 

Drex slowed his pace and took a look at the medical staff. The place was not so different from any other hospital he had visited. Not that he had visited many, fortunately, just a couple back at home when he was a little bit older than a kid, and the one at the Academy, when Dag’Har ended up in the ER with a broken arm after one of his dummy bets. 

 

The Talarian doctor sighed and came to a stop. To Drex, she sounded quite unpleasant when she talked.

 

Samar: I’m sorry, but that’s not something you need to know. This is an independent station, and my clients value their privacy. I’m sure you understand.  

 

Raimor: Of course. I don’t mean any offense, Doctor, just wanted to know if there is anything that could interfere with our work.

 

Vahin: Response

 

Clients. She did not say patients. Client was a strange word to indicate someone who needs medical attention. Clients sound more of someone paying for specific research. And she was a geneticist. 

Drex looked around, half hoping to spot something that would indicate the type of research and experiments were taking place. But there were no guinea pigs or screens with visible data to allow him any guesses. The station and the Talarians were not aligned with the Federation, the rules and ethics of the Federation did not apply here, and Drex could not exclude that the toxin that had arrived on Denali, and which they now feared would affect the Spike, had not actually been created here.

 

Samar: I’ll be sure to let you know if there is.

 

Samar stepped through the cleansing field that guarded the threshold to the Chief Medical Officers private laboratory, before pausing to make sure all the officers had followed her.

 

Samar: This is the Chief Medical Officers private lab. ::pointing at a large partitioned off area:: His office is just over there.

 

Vahin/ Raimor: Response

 

Drex: I hope the Chief Medical Officer is waiting for us :: A slightly smile bond his lips :: 

 

oO I would like to avoid ending up in a cage again Oo

 

Samar made a beeline for the office door.

 

Samar: No. I’m afraid he passed away recently.

 

Vahin/ Raimor: Response

 

From the tone she used, it seemed to Drex that the CMO’s death was a sudden and unexpected event.

 

Drex: Sorry to hear about it :: he murmured ::

 

Arriving at the officer door she paused and bent down slightly to swipe her pass on the access panel. After a moment the door unlocked with a barely audible click before sliding open.

 

Samar: ::stepping inside the office:: Food poisoning. He had an allergic reaction to something he purchased at the underground market.

 

Drex: Forgive my curiosity, but what race was the doctor?

 

Vahin/ Raimor: Response

 

Samar lowered herself into the CMO’s chair and gestured that the Starfleet officers were also welcome to sit.

 

Samar: You’d need to speak to station security about that, but I'd recommend you only eat things that have come from a replicator. Now, what is it you want to discuss?

 

Drex waited for the others to sit before getting a chair for himself. He was there to listen and give advice if required. As far as he could see, the hospital was state of the art, but it hadn't been the cure for a man's allergy. And the staff did not want to talk about that.

 

Drex: Maybe we should alert the Commodore about the dangers of the market, what do you think? :: He asked to both the medical officers ::

 

Vahin/ Raimor: Response

 

Drex: I’ll send a message.

 

The Denobulan officer picked up his PADD and typed a short message about the food and the replicator. He sent it to Commander DeVeau, as she was his immediate superior officer.

 

Vahin/ Raimor/ Samar: Response

 

Drex recalled the notes on his PADD. He knew them by heart, but the way the doctors presented the facts to Samar gave him a new perspective, and Samar's answers also gave him something new to think about.

 

Vahin/ Raimor/ Samar: Response

 

Drex: It's not something to underestimate. We have no certainties, but the most probable hypothesis is that the next attempt is here.

 

Vahin/ Raimor/ Samar: Response

 

TAG/TBC

 

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Ensign Drex

Science Officer

Denali Station

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