round 2 JP LT Jen Malcolm, (PNPC) Regg and (PNPC) Audie: Bless the Beasts and

[S'Acul Aveunallliv]

JP LT Jen Malcolm, (PNPC) Regg and (PNPC) Audie: Bless the Beasts and the Children

((Dott’s Family Quarters-USS Avandar-Crash site))

::Regg awakened inside of the closet of his quarters. Before the crash of the Avandar he was not feeling well so the day care teacher took him to his quarters.Crying, he crawled out of the rubble, into the darkness, scared and alone. He wondered where his father was, his friend Ashley.::

oOI’m alone and scared. It’s dark. I don’t like the dark.Oo

::He wandered out into the corridor, looking for anybody that could help him, cowering into the corners of the destroyed ship. He crawled under the supports and bulkheads reaching one of the jefferies tubes. Seeing some light at the top, he climbed into it with fear, barely making it inside the tube.::

::Wiping the tears away from eyes his called out for help, he continued to climb his way. It was hard for him to reach the rungs. He felt deep in his heart that his father would be waiting for him at the top. Finally reaching to the top of the tube he called out again.::

Regg: ::Crying as he screamed out.:: Help me!!!!!!!

::He climbed down to reach the deck screaming for help. When a bright light nearly blinded him and dropped to his knees crying in fear. He looked up to the tall dark shadow above him. He cried as the dark figure picked him up and carried him on their back up the ladder deck by deck until they reached deck three.::

Crewman Roberts: ::Talking to Regg.:: Where are your parents?

Regg: ::Crying, screaming.:: I dunno.... I only have my father, my mother is dead.

::The pair continued up the ladder to the next deck, where they exited on to deck three.::

Crewman Roberts: ::Shouting.:: I HAVE A SMALL CHILD HERE!!!!!!

((Aft section of the Avandar))

::Wispy clouds covered the early morning sky but the pinks and golds of dawn refused to be hidden and managed to offer light to the damaged landscape, even though they were muted by the veil of gray from the cloud cover. ::

::It was cooler now, cooler than the nighttime had been. The air was still warm by any standards, but the wind had picked up a bit and it was enough to send a chill down Jen Malcolm’s neck as she stood along the rows of dead bodies lining the aft section of the Avandar.::

::She had found Ashley’s body almost immediately. Though when looking for something deeply sought after it was rarely found until the last place searched, it seemed the opposite held true when searching for something dreaded- it was usually the first thing discovered, as if some insidious polar force pulled the unfortunate victim directly there, hungry for the pain and suffering.::

::Her hand hovered over the uniform jacket, unwilling to move it away. She had seen countless dead bodies in her life, from anonymous medical cadavers to dear friends, and looking at them had never bothered her. Just a part of life, dying was, and it was not something she’d ever feared. Until now. Try as she might she could not force herself to pull away the jacket and look at Ashley’s lifeless body. She knew, if she did, whenever she thought of the little girl, it would be that image scorched into her mind’s eye. And that she could not bear.::

::There were other officers there as well, saying their goodbyes to friends. Not all of the bodies had been covered yet and there were quite a few that Jen recognized from their visits to Sickbay. Too many she recognized from their brief stays in the triage tent, where she’d been unable to help them. The soft sounds of muffled sobs and quiet tears filled the still morning air. Jen did not join them in their mourning - she had no tears left to shed. All she was left with was a sense of disbelief::

::Ashley’s pink tennis shoes peeked out from beneath the jacket and Jen noticed a shoelace had come undone. She crouched down and reached for the laces, tying them in a little bow. Ashley had gotten the shoes as a Christmas present from her Aunt and Uncle. They’d come , all wrapped up, with them when they left the farm and had been hidden away in Jen’s closet until two mornings ago. Ashley had been so excited to show them off to her friends in daycare...::

::And then the tears came. She wiped at them before they could hit her cheeks, brushing them away from her eyes before they could fall. She couldn’t let herself fall apart or there would be no coming back.::

::She tried to ignore the sounds of crying from those around her. They were grating on her nerves and she could feel a scream building in her throat. She focused on the sounds of the work crews, the churning of the generators, the buzz and hum of power tools. But it didn’t work, they could not drown out the melancholy sounds of people saying their goodbyes, cursing their luck, searching for a lost father.::

::Jen sniffled and looked up, searching for the source of the youthful cries. Wandering amongst the dead was a little boy, his bald, blue head not much taller than some of the bodies laid out. It was Ashley’s little friend Regg, wandering and alone.::

::Regg looked to the morning sun covering his eyes crying looking for his father. He stumbled upon the dead bodies. How he got there he did not know, he looked up to see a familiar face, the face of Jen Malcolm. He ran towards her crying.::

::Jen shifted to a kneeling position so she was eye level with the little boy. She put her arms around him and pulled him close to her. She hushed his frantic sobs, rocking a bit to try and calm him::

Malcolm: Regg? Are you hurt?

Regg: ::Crying.::I can’t find my father..::sniffling.:: No, I’m not hurt. I’m scared. ::Holding on to her.::

Malcolm: I know you are.

::She stood, picking him up as she did so. His arms and legs instinctively wrapped around her with the motion and she shifted his weight onto her hip. She knew that his father had not come through the triage tent, which meant the school teacher was either one of the bodies laying around them or he was somewhere with the other survivors. Jen was not a betting woman, but if she were, her money would be on one of the covered bodies at their feet:::

::She rubbed Regg’s back. His heaving sobs had calmed a bit, but she had to do something to settle him down::

Malcolm: Hey Regg, want to hang out with me for a while?

::She wasn’t sure what she would do with him. He certainly couldn’t stay in the triage tent with her, it would be unsafe, but she wasn’t going to leave him here.::

Regg: ::Looking at her.:: Ok.:: Looking back over her shoulder sniffling and huffing.::

::Audie walked from around the other side of the ship, wandering around. In his mind he is looking for Askade, but found Jen and Regg. He ran up to them whimpering at them both then sat down in front of them. He looked at Jen holding out his paw to her. Jen smiled, strangely relieved to see that the friendly dog had made it out alive. She tapped Regg’s arm::

Malcolm: Look Regg, one of your friends came to see you.

::Audie’s paw hung in the air, a gesture Jen had learned was the big dog’s normal form of greeting. The normally white fur was stained with blood. Jen crouched down so Regg could give Audie a pet, and on closer inspection she could see the dog had a torn pad::

Malcolm: ::holding the paw:: Bet that hurts, huh boy? ::she turned to Regg:: Why don’t we get Audie out of here, and you can help me fix him up. How’s that sound?

::It would only take about a inch and a half of wire to repair the padd and Jen was willing to spare it for the animal. It would be a good distraction for Regg::

Regg: ::Petting Audie on the head, and calming down.:: Ok. ::Trying to smile, but his lip started to quiver.::

::She stood up, hoisting Regg back into her arms::

Malcolm: C’mon, let’s go.

::She patted her leg to get Audie’s attention and gave a short whistle to get him to follow. They walked back toward the camp, away from the rows of bodies. But, with each step, Jen’s heart pounded, beating faster and faster, as if it were trying to signal her that she was leaving unfinished business. She tried to ignore it, to push its ache away. But there was no fighting it. She could not resist one last look over her shoulder, at the little pink shoes and their matching white bows.

-end-

(PNPC’s) Regg/Audie D’ciq

Simmed by Matthews

and

Lt. Jen Malcolm

CMO

USS Avandar

Edited March 11, 2012 by FltAdml. Wolf
Adding Round 2 prefix.