Called to the Office
Posted on Tue Sep 3rd, 2024 @ 2:23pm by Lieutenant JG Toareth Rouen (née Darqa) & Captain Qa'ada MD
3,345 words; about a 17 minute read
Mission:
Fortuna
Location: Captain's Ready Room
Timeline: Current
Toareth left Sick Bay in Kez's capable hands. While they still waited for a new assistant CMO now that Toareth was suddenly made CMO, Chief Keselowski had to fill the role in her absence. The reason for Toareth's absence was none other than a call to the Captain's Ready Room. Not a call to the conference room, or any other location for any form of group meeting. No, the Captain's Ready Room. This meant a one-on-one meeting with the CO. Toareth figured the bird-man wanted to meet his senior officers face to face to get to know them a bit better, but, at the same time, figured there was something more at play here. Did he dig into her past some? Find something questionable? Any gaps that needed to be filled in? Anything possibly linking her to the mysterious Lynch and whatever section he worked for? Did Captain Qa'ada find out something about Toareth's criminal past?
As always, and as she had been told, Toareth was going to play as innocent as she could. Her and Lynch had gone over her 'official' past enough to be able to pass any lie detector test and to leave any telepath questioning what they were reading. Whatever the captain had in store, Toareth was ready. She hoped, however, that this was going to be a standard meet and greet.
The turbolift deposited her on the Bridge. The nurse at the medical station stood as though about to be relieved. Toareth waved her down and pointed to the Ready Room; her destination. As she arrived, Toareth depressed the call button to alert Qa'ada that someone had come calling at his door.
Captain Qa'ada sat on the small couch in the corner of the triangular shaped ready room reading over crew reports. While his time aboard the Britannic would be short, the Captain had opted to make some small alterations to the Ready Room as he planned to use the room as his residence with Zirvell remaining in the Captain's Quarters. Primarily meant for meetings, the Ready Room was a place where he could work or rest while remaining next to the bridge for emergencies.
Hearing the door chime, the Captain knew that the new Chief Medical Officer had arrived. He rose from the couch placed the PADD he was holding into the small bookcase above it. He walked toward the rear of the room to the desk, wishing he would have had a moment to use his private rest room prior to the Doctor arriving. Sitting down, he activated the monitor.
"Enter."
As the door slid open invitingly, Toareth felt anything but. She stepped in, however, and continued allowing her feet to carry her before the captain's desk. "Lieutenant Darq...uh...Rouen, reporting as...requested." She stopped herself from using 'ordered' at the last second.
The Captain flexed his wings, slightly, as he sat in the chair in an effort to make himself more comfortable in the seat, but he was a bit curious about the Doctor and her demeanor. "Is everything alright, Doctor?" Qa'ada questioned.
"Everything is fine," she said immediately, then, "sir." Toareth decided to add, "I was, however, not expecting to find myself as the CMO so soon. I admit I was not prepared for this. I have found myself in similar situations in the past and I can put your concerns at rest. I am up for the job."
"I know you're up for it, Doctor. You wouldn't be in the role if I thought you were unprepared for it," the Aurellian answered as he reached forward and turned the display monitor back off. Pulling his arms close he rested them on the rests of the chair as he looked at the Lieutenant. He knew he came off a bit smugger than he normally tried to, but he knew that this conversation could become uncomfortable quickly. Regrettably, he may have started it on that path already.
He shifted a bit before continuing, "I wanted to ask you about something that happened when we were meeting with the Cardassian child in the Captain's Quarters. I noticed you injecting yourself with a hypospray," he got right to it. "Normally, as Captain, I would be contented not to question a potential medical condition; however, in my role as Commanding Officer of a hospital ship, I have a bit more involvement with the medical staff than normal. I pulled your file, it gave no mention of the hypospray that I could see, so I was understandably curious." He rambled, a bit, but was genuine in what he was saying to the new Chief Medical Officer.
Toareth looked blankly for but a split second. She figured he would have had questions about her service record and some of the gaps therein, but was relieved at what he was asking after. "Yes," she said, "you are correct, sir." Toareth stepped forward and took a seat. She was not invited to do that, but did anyway. "As you are well aware," from reading her profile, "I am El-Aurian. By human standards, I am...well...very old. I am well travelled in terms of space, mostly Alpha and Beta Quadrants. From my profile, I am sure you noticed an anomalous condition regarding migraines. I get these migraine headaches like clockwork about every 30 hours. Sometimes more and sometimes less. And these migraines have a varying degree of effect. Nothing more than an irritating pinch in my head to total debilitation making me unable to perform basic duties. My commbadge helps me keep a record of frequency and intensity. I am trying to find a rhyme or reason to these migraines." She shifted in her seat, getting more comfortable. "I hope you understand my full meaning when I say that no one, no medical professional in either Alpha or Beta Quadrant has been able to pinpoint a cause or even find resolution to my migraines. Also, no one has been able to produce any medicine to help or remedy my condition. A Romulan doctor once took a shot in the dark and dosed me with phalmectin. Though I felt the pinch in my head, the following migraine had no effect."
Before the captain had the chance to ask, "Phalmectin is a memory inhibitor. Primarily prescribed to victims of mental or emotional trauma and also given to violent criminals, anyone where a past memory can trigger undesirable outbursts of emotion or violence. Essentially phalmectin makes the patient forget that particular memory. In my case, perhaps it makes me forget I am having a migraine at all. Doctors have researched, I have researched, and nowhere can an answer be found as to why phalmectin helps me with my migraines. Being a memory inhibitor, I refuse to take regular doses for fear of addiction and forgetting what I know. I only take minuscule doses around the time I think a migraine could occur. This ensures I will not suffer a debilitating migraine during a critical time."
Also, before he had a chance to ask, "These migraines started the day of the El-Aurian rescue mission by the U.S.S. Enterprise-Bravo. And even that has not helped to produce answers. So, you see...I have been living with these migraines for over 80 years, have been researching for 80 years. And in these 80 years, no one has been able to find a cause or resolution or medication or remedy. The only answers I have are taking phalmectin, whose effects are temporay, and some nonsense given to me by a Trill religious leader, who I might add is not a medical professional."
Toareth finished her speech and sat there, hoping she had covered about everything and had not rambled on.
Captain Qa'ada listened to the explanation carefully, curious about the treatment and the information that was being shared with him. He was curious about the migraines and why no Starfleet Doctor, or any other doctor for that matter, had been unable to figure out the treatment for them. It was of interest that a Romulan had been able to provide some comfort, but that led to other questions of how she came into the care of a Romulan in the first place.
"Phalmectin?" The Captain asked. "I wasn't familiar with that until today. Is it a Romulan medication?"
"Romulan development, yes. Through diplomatic channels and attempts to share resources and knowledge, especially medical care and humanitarian aid, phalmectin has been used time and again in Federation space by Federation doctors. Though its use is not widespread. It is approved for use by Starfleet but they like to keep it on the downlow, out of the knowledge of most. I have spent some time...much time...in Romulan space over the decades. All prior to my time in Starfleet. I have studied Romulans a great deal," though she was not going into how deep her studies were (i.e. her knowledge of Romulan physiology as to torture for information without killing them too quickly).
"I know they are not exactly allies or friendly to the Federation," she continued, "but they did ally themselves with us during the Dominion War. They also act more kindly toward El-Aurians, despite our appearance as almost identical to humans."
Britannic's Captain nodded, having been very familiar with the El-Aurians due to his experiences in Starfleet Medical. While the El-Aurians long ago lost their homeworld, they had still experienced hardship and Starfleet had spent a lot of time helping them with becoming more stable. He didn't anticipate learning that the El-Aurians had experiences with the Circle of Listeners, but it made sense that they would. As the El-Aurians were not members of the Federation they could freely congregate with other empires. The Federation would still be there to pickup the pieces when they fell.
"I can understand how frustrating it would be to have to rely on a government outside of your own, or ours for that matter, for help. With the experience that the Circle of Listeners," he referenced the El-Aurian's political name instead of the species one absently, "I am a bit perplexed that they did not have a potential cure for what's afflicting you, or at least an idea of how to help you with this."
"What is more perplexing, sir," Toareth said, "is that Starfleet Medical cannot find a potential cure either. Nor have they found any means of helping. Only a Romulan doctor has been able to; without any idea as to why Phalmectin seems to work while only temporary." Toareth, long ago, had lost all hope in finding a solution. Still, "though it is my honest opinion that it would be a waste of time, if you would like to have a look; to scan me, administer tests, and perform your own research, I would surrender myself to that. Again, I am afraid it is but a waste of time."
Inside Qa'ada two sides were waging a bit of a war with the information that he'd been presented. The doctor in him was very concerned for the health and safety of Toareth. To be afflicted with a condition and having had no answers for so long was devastating in more ways that one for anyone, let alone a doctor. Then there was the side that was a Captain and had to face the possibility that one of his Lieutenants, let alone the Chief Medical Officer of a hospital ship, was potentially impacted by a contagion that only a Romulan had potentially treated. There were a lot of consequences of this potentially. The Romulans were known for subterfuge, including genetic subterfuge, then there was also the question of how she had come to be treated by a Romulan.
"Normally I'd be contented to have you meet with the Chief Medical Officer for a full workup, but seeing as you're the Chief Medical Officer I'd assume that you already had gone that route?"
"I have, sir," she said with a small smile. "I had a full scan the day I arrived. The, then, CMO found nothing anomalous, no imbalance, no reason at all for me to have these migraines. And I told him about my migraines beforehand so that he knew what to look for." And to make the long story short, "he did not find anything. I even dropped by the science lab to get another opinion, an opinion outside of a medical field. I even saw a Trill religious leader once. I am open to other fields of thought and other avenues of progress. So far, only phalmectin seems to provide temporary relief and only the Trill religious leader had something to say that only somewhat resembled an answer."
The Captain reached forward toward the keyboard built into the desk, making a point to research the phalmectin treatment that was identified. He was curious about the molecular makeup of the medication, curious if it had any similar treatments. As he was typing though he realized that the Doctor had identified speaking with a Trill religious leader. He glanced up, curious, "And what was their explanation?"
"That I was 'missing' something," Toareth said with indignation. "That was all he said. Figures, when I asked what I was missing, that he would not expand on that." She shrugged her shoulders. "Again, I was looking into other fields of thought. I never had much use...or confidence, in religious thought."
"To each their own," the Captain answered honestly. "I've seen a lot of things in this galaxy during my tenure and somethings defy explanation. Sometimes there is just something more," he paused, "or, perhaps, something missing. I find this curious."
"I don't," she said. "The religious seem to have an insatiable appetite for power and they achieve that by keeping their followers in fear...or in confusion." She looked away briefly. She thought of Rene, her husband. They were married by his own religious tradition and Toareth decided to give what Rene held his faith to a try. She was learning, but had not yet found any answers. "I stick with what I know. And that is medicine. I do not know what is causing these migraines," and she palmed her hand to her forehead, just above her right eye. She winced. "Speak of the devil you might say." She rubbed the heel of her palm in circular motions already knowing it was a futile attempt to massage away the encroaching pain. So far, this migraine was only a pinch deep insider her head, above and behind her right eye. But already, it was beginning to sing. "A moment," she said. "...sir. If you will allow."
Toareth pressed her eyes shut and the pain grew. It was not increasing to any great degree however. This was surely going to be a mid-grade category migraine.
Captain Qa'ada nodded his approval, but watched as the pain grew for the Chief Medical Officer from his chair. He was a Captain now, but that did not negate the fact that he had been a doctor in Starfleet for much, much longer. Since his days on the Saratoga he'd been keenly aware of the importance of observation in any patient that was ill, and he was very curious about what he was seeing here. Grabbing his Tricorder, brought with him from the Bradbury, the doctor side of his past kicked in over the Captain side. Initializing the scanning field, the Captain used the latest generation tricorder on Toareth as she was in the throws of her condition.
Between two waves of pain coursing through her head, Toareth gave an instinctive singular laugh at the sight of the captain pulling a Tricorder to perform a scan.
"I am afraid you are going to need something a bit more invasive than that," she said before returning to pressing her palm to her forehead.
Regardless of her words, Captain Qa'ada performed his scan, paying special attention to the cranial area. The readout on the tricorder started to populate.
RACE: EL-AURIAN
GENDER: FEMALE
AGE: 164 EARTH YEARS
STARFLEET RECORD: AVAILABLE
STARFLEET RECORD: RETRIEVING
COMPARING RESULTS AGAINST SCAN
HEARTRATE: ELEVATED
BRAIN FUNCTION: NORMAL
BLOOD FLOW: NORMAL
BLOOD SALINIZATION: ELEVATED NORMAL
HYDRATION: AVERAGE
CEREBRALSPINAL FLUID: NORMAL
TOXICOLOGY:
There the Tricorder paused briefly.
TOXICOLOGY: ~~~ANALYZING~~~ ... PHALMECTIN
TOXICOLOGY CONCENTRATION: ~~~ANALYZING~~~ ... TWO PARTS PER MILLION
Captain Qa'ada already knew that phalmectin was not a standard Starfleet prescribed medication as the Tricorder was informing him of just that.
TOXICOLOGY PPM ANALYSIS: ... WITHIN PARAMETERS
STARFLEET PERSONNEL: OK FOR DUTY
But Captain Qa'ada could clearly see that Toareth was not, albeit momentarily, ok for duty.
Toareth removed her palm from her forehead and sat back, took a breath and looked up at her captain. The migraine was passing and the pain mitigating quickly.
HEARTRATE: DECREASING
...
HEARTRATE: NORMAL
"Allow me to wager a guess," she said to him. "It says that I am fit for duty?"
The Captain paused, processing the results of the scan as they scrolled over the small display of the Tricorder. Pecking at the controls with his clawed fingers, he kept returning to the toxicology. The Tricorder wouldn't, typically, scan for the Romulan medication, instead identifying it as a foreign substance. It was especially atypical as this was his Tricorder that he was using, which added to the unusualness of the scenario. Considering the situation carefully, he weighed the options available to him.
"It does," the Captain relented, "Nonetheless, I am still concerned by this condition and its potential implications for you. You're the Chief Medical Officer of the Britannic, a Starfleet Medical vessel on special assignment. I just named you legal guardian of a child aboard this vessel who's been through more than enough trauma. There's a lot to consider."
"I agree, whole heartedly, sir. Again, if I find myself in a situation where a migraine would be inopportune, I have ways of avoiding it; the migraine that is. And it puts no one at risk. I have lived with this for about 80 Earth years now. I know this does not negate any concerns, but dealing with it is something I am masterful at. It will not get in the way of me performing my duties."
Qa'ada continued after considering, "I'm going to allow you to proceed, Doctor; however, I have a few conditions. First, I believe that we need to conduct more intensive scans. Britannic will travel to Endicronimas V at the conclusion of this mission. As the Headquarters for Division 14 they have some of the best doctors in the Federation there. I'd like you to setup an appointment. In addition, I want you to consult with the El-Aurian Circle of Listeners at New Aur about your condition, if you have not already done so. Thoughts?"
"El-Aurians," Toareth repeated as a scoff. She said that more out of instinct. If there was one group she did not want anything to with, it was other El-Aurians. But her captain had some conditions he wanted met. If Toareth had been living with one headache for over 80 years, what was one more? She hesitated, but "I will do that, sir. I admit to not having dealt with Division 14 HQ. I will look forward hearing what they have to say," she said while mentally completing her thought with 'as they waste their time.'
The Aurelian Captain nodded, choosing instead of engaging about the El-Aurians and her reaction to move on from the situation. The Doctor would reveal her reasons to him when she was ready, at least he hoped. Instead, he continued, "14 has a lot of specialists from throughout the Federation that deal in only the most unusual cases. If anyone could come up with a solution it's them." A series of beeps came from the desktop terminal. The bird-like captain glanced down at the notification, "I'm sorry but I have a message coming in from Starfleet Medical. Was there anything else?"
"No, sir," Toareth said as she moved to stand. The message for the captain came as a welcomed avenue to conclude this conversation. "I will return to Sick Bay."
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