By Lance Hartcort & Alison Schneider
100203.0723
Following Who Are You?
-=Sickbay, USS Alchemy=-
100203.0723
Following Who Are You?
-=Sickbay, USS Alchemy=-
Lance sat at the small desk in the Alchemy’s small sickbay as he read over the last of the reports of the medical conditions of the injured that had been treated by both himself and the ships LMH.
Rubbing his eyes, he signed off on the last report and placed the PADD onto the cluttered desktop. He leaned over and took a long sip from his coffee mug. The fluid had long since gone cold but he was too tired to care.
He stood and made his way out of the small office and checked over the darkened sickbay. All of the activity from earlier had now ceased and he had turned down the lights so that only the glow from the instrument illuminated the room. Flashing colors of red, blue, and green lit the room with rhythmic flashes of color. Lance could not help to think of a dance club, although there certainly was no party here today.
“Why don’t you go and rack out for a while?” The LMH’s voice startled Lance causing him to jump sideways in shock.
Lance whirled around on the holographic doctor. “Damn it! Don’t do that!”
Dr. McKay laughed quietly. “Sorry, I forget how quiet I am.” He placed a hand on Lance's shoulder. “You should get some rest. Reese is stable and there really is nothin' more to do for now. Ya have been going for well over twenty four hours, you are only human.”
Lance looked at him incredulously. A smart ass quip came to mind attacking the fact that he cohort was a hologram but he knew that in this case the LMH was right. If he did not get some rest he would not be any good to anyone.
“OK. I’m going but you contact me if there is any change in Dabin, good or bad.” Lance ordered as he made his way towards the door that opened for him with a swoosh.
Lance moved down the thin, empty corridor and finally wound up at the small room that served as his quarters on the Alchemy. He made his way over to his duffle and unzipped it. He pulled out a set of grey pajamas and made his way to the small sonic shower in the room.
As he stood in the shower, he regretted not having access to a real one. A steaming, hot water shower would be just what he needed right now. He finished and dressed in a short time and sat at the small desk that adorned the far wall. He leaned back in the chair and rubbed his eyes.
T’Dara.
He sighed. He could not believe that she was gone. A bright future had been extinguished.
*Why didn’t she come to me, or at least the LMH?* He could not help the feel anguish over such a dramatic loss. *We might have been able to help.*
T’Dara had all of the potential to be something much more than she was. In the short time that Lance had known her as her CMO he had already come to rely on her not only as the head nurse but as he would a fellow doctor. He had written a letter to Starfleet Medical on her behalf, suggesting that she be fast tracked to becoming a full-fledged physician.
He leaned forward and groaned. He hated not being able to help people, especially those he knew. He turned on his computer and opened his log. He needed to composed a letter to T’Dara’s family.
He was going to open her personnel file when he came across a file that he had uploaded before they set off on this cruise.
It was the file for the experimental translation device that had been created by the Ferengi: the device that Lance and his cohort Alison were sure would be able to restore the hearing to a particular little girl.
Tapping his finger on the desktop, he thought.
“Perhaps it is time to stop feeling helpless and to take action.” He mumbled out loud.
He opened the comlink and typed in the address of the person he wanted to talk to. After a moment of watching the Starfleet crest rotate on the screen it was replaced with the face of an old friend.
[Lance is that you?]
Lance smiled broadly. “Yup. How it going on the big blue marble?”
[Oh you know,] came the peppy and quick reply from Alison Schneider, [chaos and calamity as usual.]
Lance shook his head, knowing all too well what she meant. If Alison wasn't doing a hundred things at once she was going crazy. Still, perhaps this little bit of inanity, her style especially, was good for him.
[But,] she continued, not giving him a chance to reply, [I do have some good news.]
"I could use some."
[Something wrong?]
Lance pondered unburdening himself to Alison, but for the time being chose not to. He needed something else to focus on, and so he shook his head. "Maybe later," he finally said.
Alison nodded slowly, smiling softly to let him know when he was ready to talk, she would be ready to listen. [It's ready. The device.]
It took Lance a moment to realize what she was talking about. "A working prototype."
[Not even. Third generation implant. Of course, it has not been tested yet, but Dron assures me that it will work. Then again, he will tell me anything that I want to hear when I have those lobes of his in my hands.]
“Well that is good news.” He leaned back in his chair. “Actually we are in route to Earth and should be available to meet with you in a few days. We…we have to meet up with the Sera and then stop at Vulcan.” He eyes gave away his sadness.
He quickly recovered and leaned forward. “I am going to talk to Tress's parents as soon as I can and lay out our idea to them. If they say yes to attempting this…can you free up some time to assist?” He smiled. “I could use your help, plus I still owe you a dinner I believe.”
[Actually, I think you owe me two.]
Lance paused for a short moment to think about her comment, knowing that she was joking, of course. "How do I know that it isn't you who owes me one of those dinners?" he bantered back.
She playfully shrugged her shoulders. [Semantics. Besides, would a gallant gentleman like yourself ever let a lady pay for a meal?]
Lance nodded. “That is a true statement there. I’ll keep in touch with you and we can hash out the details the closer we get to Earth. Mainly we will need a medical facility to use. The sickbay on the Sera would work but I’ll have to secure permission from the captain.” He leaned back and rubbed his chin. “Even with the child not being a member of Starfleet I do not for see a problem with that. You should see if you can find us a place on Earth just in case. Oh and Alison.” He smiled. “It’s good to see you again so soon.”
[Always a charmer, Lance. I'll see you soon.]
The screen went black and Lance leaned back in his chair and ran his hands through his hair. This was certainly good news at a time when everyone would need it. He stood and made his way over to his bed and hopped in pulling the covers over his head.
Tomorrow he would talk to the Vedek and maybe offer the man and his daughter a ray of hope; giving her the ability to hear again.
Lt. Commander Lance Hartcort
CMO
USS Serendipity NCC-2012
&
Lt. Alison Schneider
Starfleet Research
Currently on Earth