Ensign Niev Galanis - Welcome to the Aftermath
Niev Galanis
((McCoy Memorial Hospital, San Francisco - Earth))
The weeks since Frontier Day had been a painful blur for Niev Galanis. The last thing they clearly remembered was collapsing on the decking in Engineering. After that were only hazy snippets. Being carried along, put on some sort of emergency shuttle. Their first clear memory was waking up groaning in pain as the painkillers wore off in the middle of the night.
The doctors had listed off a number of injuries that sounded absurd, even as the Centauran felt every one of them. But the medical staff had been mostly concerned about the concussion. Niev had never truly appreciated that use of the word until now. The throbbing headaches, difficulties even looking at a PADD, the impossibility of concentration… it was quite like their brain had nearly exploded.
Niev let out a sigh and picked at the off-white bandage wrapped tightly around their head. After the medics had been sure Niev wasn’t about to die, they’d been transferred to a local hospital for rehabilitation and further monitoring. Every Starfleet facility was totally overrun, so they were taking rooms wherever they could get them. The Centauran didn’t mind being out of the way. It hadn’t exactly been fun watching the grievously injured be wheeled by.
Nobody had visited the room except the doctors. When Niev could finally look at a PADD again, they exchanged messages with their parents between checking the casualty lists. The Centauran wasn’t sure what reaction they were expecting, but they knew they should’ve expected the one they got. Apparently, the Galanis couple had set sail from San Francisco within an hour of Niev’s departure. They were halfway to some island called “Hawaii” at this point and insisted Niev could tell them all about how they beat the Borg later.
It drew a long, heavy sigh from the ensign to think about breaking the truth to them. What part their child had played in the madness that was Frontier Day. Thumbs still immobilized by casts, the androgyne scrolled down the list of casualties for what felt like the hundredth time today, feeling their stomach tie in sickening knots every time. The names Niev was looking for hadn’t shown up. That had to be a good sign… right?
Frowning to themself, Niev swiped the PADD to display another screen - this one an official looking Starfleet document. They contemplated the empty fields on the screen, eyes lingering on the signature line at the bottom. The blank space seemed to stretch on for infinity, pulling in the ensign’s attention like a black hole. Their brow furrowed and they bit thoughtfully on the inside of their cheek.
oO …It would probably be for the best if I… Oo
The chirp of the door chime jerked Niev out of whatever train of thought they were in, their wavy dark bangs swaying as they looked up. That was odd. The doctors and nurses were on a regular schedule and weren’t supposed to be here for another hour. Eyebrows rising slightly under the bandage, Niev called out to permit the visitor inside.
Galanis: Enter.
The door slid open and Niev’s eyes went wide, immediately swiping their PADD and placing it face down as they sat up in surprise. Bad idea. They noticeably winced in pain as they braced themselves on their hands, wiggling to prop themself up and get a better look at the familiar looking stranger.
Iko: Response
Galanis: I’m sorry, who…?
It hit Niev mid-sentence - where they’d seen this woman before, who she was. Almost immediately the ensign’s words trail off and their eyes dip away. It was Iko of… Lieutenant Iko. From Amity Outpost. Vivid flashes of that day’s events welled involuntarily to the front of Niev’s mind as they tried to figure out what to say.
Iko: Response
The Centauran blinked several times. They clearly weren’t expecting that.
Galanis: You mean… you went out of your way to come here? ::a beat passes:: …Why?
Iko: Response
TAG!/TBC…