JP - Lt. Cmdr. Addison MacKenzie & Lt. JG Alieth - Rough Around the Edges [Part 2]
Alieth
JP - Lt. Cmdr. Addison MacKenzie & Lt. JG Alieth - Rough Around the Edges [Part 2]
((Infirmary, Promenade, Deep Space Nine))
The Vulcan opened her mouth, but before she uttered a word, she seemed to think it over, pursed her lips, and leaned back, straightening her posture. For a few seconds, she appeared to be more interested in smoothing the creases that had formed in her dress than in carrying on with the dialogue.
Eventually, she folded her hands in her lap and looked at MacKenzie once more. Right where her fingers had held the biobed there were small dents, a sign of the strength with which she had grasped the edge of the device.
Alieth: My personal expectations are irrelevant. But obviously, the loss of the mentorship of one of the fleet's finest medical officers is not necessarily a scenario that I anticipated so soon.
Addison thought for a moment, closed the tricorder and took a seat at her makeshift desk, simultaneously gesturing for Alieth to join her.
MacKenzie: Let me ask you - are you confident in your medical abilities?
Alieth hesitated for a moment, and finally jumped out of bed to sit again, this time, alongside Addison.
Alieth: I have successfully undergone the standard exams that prove that my education is suitable, however my experience is still insufficient.
MacKenzie: And do you think that you are capable of implementing those skills in a moment of crisis?
The Vulcan took a moment before she provided a response. When she finally spoke, she glanced back at the CMO's face, which she had been circumventing for the last few minutes.
Alieth: In a high percentage of situations, indeed.
Addison nodded and smiled as the junior doctor proved her point - the Vulcan had already done exactly that. She had but one more question.
MacKenzie: So why is that you feel you need a mentor?
Alieth: As I mentioned earlier, I have little experience. And I am aware that my bedside manners towards non-Vulcans are, to say the least, suboptimal.
Addison couldn’t help but guffaw at her colleague’s analysis and responded in an amused tone.
MacKenzie: That, my friend, is a galactic understatement. Vulcans are, without a doubt, rough around the edges when it comes to empathy.
She bowed her head and pondered what the human doctor had told her thoroughly.
Alieth: :: with hesitation:: You are correct
MacKenzie: It’s nothing you can’t learn, though - inside and outside of Sickbay. You have plenty of good teachers around you, as long as you pay attention.
Alieth: I also detest your departure for something else. ::She corrected her posture and her next sentence was delivered with extreme gravity.:: I will certainly miss you.
Addison mocked nearly falling out of her chair.
MacKenzie: Well, let’s not get too carried away.
She winked before continuing.
MacKenzie: The universe is too small to think that we won’t run into one another again. Besides, you know I will be checking in with Commander Teller to monitor your progress...
The Vulcan bowed her head slightly and, as the realization of what Mackenzie's words inferred reached her brain, her features loosened. Even the shadow of a teeny, tiny smile crept across her severe countenance.
In the meantime, she pointed back to the biobed.
MacKenzie: Alright, back to the exam.
MacKenzie opened her tricorder and watched as Alieth got back up on the biobed.
MacKenzie: So, aside from the aforementioned symptoms, any other issues?
Alieth glanced at Mackenzie for a long time. She wondered if she should confess her sleepless nights and how meditation was useless now that her brain was only for herself. How the feeling of loss and hopelessness curled up around her stomach and turned everything to ashes in her mouth. How not even the logic of feeding to maintain an adequate physical condition succeeded in forcing her to eat anything more than a few crumbs. How she was immersed in a grieving for someone who had died not once, but twice for her.
The isolation and grief she endured. And how little she could share about it, given the customs of her people.
Alieth blinked a couple of times and averted her eyes.
Her mentor was leaving soon. And that burden would not be the last thing that would carry her to her new destination.
Alieth: Just a faint soreness. :: She answered. This time, her voice sounded especially hieratic.:: Something expected
MacKenzie: What about any medications you were given after the stay in Sickbay? Are you still taking any of those?
Alieth: I have been using it according to the prescription. As instructed, I have to take 3 more doses before withdrawing it.
Addison held up her tricorder and showed it to the Vulcan.
MacKenzie: There are some neurological discrepancies here since your last exam. I don’t know quite what to make of them, but I’m going to note them in your record so they can be properly monitored.
Alieth examined the human's featured and allowed herself to show the minimum hint of a smile. It was curious how, since she had left her home planet, humans had started to become an integral part of her life, with their disturbing habits and blatant emotions. Highly irritating and, at the same time, representing the very essence of IDIC themselves.
Certainly, she was going to miss the former CMO, although she would probably not be the one who would lament her departure most deeply.
Alieth left the biobed with a dignified motion that disguised the fact that she had to make a little leap to reach the floor.
Alieth: Now that we are done, there is a little trick that I would like to teach you before you leave. It is a technique that I think you will find particularly useful in the future.
A mischievous twinkle gleamed in the Vulcan's almond eyes.
Alieth: It is absolutely painless, but it will probably trigger a reaction... of fear... in the heart of your patients. Or your enemies.
Addison cocked her head as she looked at the Vulcan.
MacKenzie: I’m already afraid...
The Vulcan nodded, replicated a vivid orange tea for herself as well as Mackenzie's preferred drink, which she placed on the biobed before the explanation began.
It was going to take a while, but Alieth was fine with it.
She was going to enjoy every second of it.
[END]
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Lieutenant Commander Addison MacKenzie, M.D., Ph.D., FASFS
First Officer
USS Resolution
V239601AM0
&
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Lt. JG Alieth
Medical Officer
USS Thor NCC-82607
Fleet Captain A. Kells, Commanding
Author ID number: E239702A10
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