From: Christine Fontaine 
Date: Wed, 12 Mar 1997 23:04:44 -0500
Subject: USS CHESAPEAKE: Memories (Part I)

SD 90312.2304
MD 02.1600
Scene: USS CHESAPEAKE: Sickbay: CMO's Office
Catherine collapsed at her desk, her head cradled gently against her arms.  
Sighing, the vet closed her eyes and tried to centre herself with a few deep 
breaths.  Emotionally drained from the effort of maintaing her composure 
throughout the afternoon, Catherine could no longer hold her armour in 
place.  Tiny chinks had already begun to appear in the armour and they now 
cracked, causing the doctor's emotional control to shatter and fall like 
shards of broken glass.
Tears began to fall, unbidden, as all the emotions that Catherine had been 
keeping inside spilled out.  Tired and weary, the vet felt incapable of 
dealing with all the emotions that the confessions she had heard conjured in 
her.  Sensitive, empathetic and compassionate, Catherine could not help but 
feel another's pain, even when related second-hand.
Her training as a veterinarian, and her duties aboard the REGENT had never 
prepared Doctor Ledoux for any of this.  The most challenging patient she 
had had aboard the REGENT had been Rich, and that was simply due to his 
playful nature.  Tears welling in her eyes once again at the thought of 
Rich, Catherine recalled that first encounter in sickbay, back when Rich had 
been simply 'Lieutenant Wilson, the Operations Manager' and Catherine had 
been a green Ensign, fresh from ALB.
Rich had been in sickbay, after injuring himself by breaking a tractor-beam 
with his runabout, the MING.  Catherine had worked feverishly to repair the 
internal bleeding he had suffered, combined with severe head injuries and 
damage to his left arm.  Tending to Rich aboard the runabout, the vet had 
been relieved when she finally had him in the REGENT's Sickbay.
<< begin flashback >>
Scene: USS REGENT: Sickbay
Commander Sunbright and Lt. Wilson were gently being placed upon 
bio-beds in the Regent's sickbay as Dr. Ledoux followed but a few 
steps behind.  The vet was very pleased with the efficient and quick
response of the medical staff.  The transfer had been smoothly 
completed.
After briefly checking on Sunbright, ensuring herself that the 
Sivaoan first officer was resting comfortably, Catherine turned 
towards Lt. Wilson, whose condition continued to worry the doctor.  
She was very glad to have all of sickbay's medical diagnostic 
equipment at her fingertips.
The metabolic readings had stabilized to a point where the doctor was 
no longer afraid to dose Rich with any additional drugs, should it 
become necessary, but even with the added sophistication of the 
sickbay's computers, she couldn't quite figure out what it was about 
the readings that disturbed her.  There was still something tugging 
at the back of her mind, perhaps a half-forgotten piece of medical 
knowledge.  Whatever it was, it nagged at her thoughts.
Dr. Ledoux proceeded to effect some of the more delicate facial 
reconstruction that required a finer touch than she had been able to 
manage while aboard the Ming.  Catherine wanted to ensure that *her* 
repair work wouldn't fall apart under pressure, the way that the 
previous surgery had.  Once again, Catherine shook her head at the 
incompetance of whomever had performed that operation.  That kind of 
unprofessional work shouldn't be allowed!
After working for quite a length of time, Dr. Ledoux was finally satisfied
with the painstaking work that she had effected.  Catherine then 
activated a regen field, its rosy glow bathing Rich's body in a soft, 
warm light.  That would help to heal the damaged tissues that 
Catherine had so carefully put back together.
The doctor then turned towards that curious arm that had tweaked her 
interest.  Setting the detailed scanners to work, Catherine was 
flabbergasted by the results they displayed.  She blinked.  Once.  
Twice.  She reset the scanners and had them run another pass.  The 
results stayed the same.
Catherine wasn't quite sure what to make of the evidence that was 
staring her straight in the face.  Was she dreaming?  Was she 
imagining things.  Giving herself a quick pinch to reassure herself 
that she was, indeed, fully conscious, the doctor came to the only 
conclusion that seemed logical in her mind.
Suddenly the rough-shod job that had been done on Rich made sense.  
No wonder the surgery had been of such a poor quality.  No one whom 
Catherine would consider qualified had touched the injured arm.
So what was it that had shocked and surprised the vet?
The mechanical components of Rich's cybernetic arm were not only 
unlike anything the doctor had ever seen before, the materials of 
which they were composed were not used, at least in Catherine's 
experience, in human medicine.  The reason for this was now clear, if 
she could trust in the computer readouts.  The writing present on the 
artificial replacements was not in any Federation language, and, what 
clinched it for the doctor was the tiny insignia clearly visible 
under the detailed scrutiny of the sickbay computers.
Romulan.
Sometime, somewhere, someway, Rich's own upper arm, shoulder blade 
and collar bone had been crushed, only to be replaced with a Romulan 
fabrication.  But why and how?  These were the questions that Dr. 
Ledoux wanted answered.  What had happened?  It had to have been 
fairly recently, within the last year she would guess, but Romulan?  
Why?  How?
Crazy thoughts began to tumble through Catherine's mind.  Was Lt. 
Wilson a Romulan operative?  Was he collecting valuable information 
on Starfleet for them?  A thousand panicked questions whirled through 
Catherine's mind until she got a grip on reality once again.
Lt. Wilson was obviously a trusted member of the senior staff, after 
all, he was the second officer.  And no doubt Catherine was not the 
first doctor to notice the cybernetic arm.  It would have certainly 
been taken note of in any previous sickbay visit.  Still. Catherine 
was curious as to the circumstances surrounding its implantation, and 
quite stunned by her discovery.
Pushing those thoughts aside for now, the doctor began a closer 
examination of the arm and its components.  While it had functioned 
adequately so far, it bore the same signs of incompetance as the 
facial reconstruction.  As Catherine's hands began to dance here and 
there, fixing minor damage, a nebulous thought began to form in her 
mind.  As she analyzed Rich's arm and bolstered the lousy Romulan 
surgery, the diffuse thought began to take on substance in her mind, 
coalescing into something more solid.
Dr. Ledoux had a great deal of experience with cybernetic implants 
and prosthetic devices.  Granted, not with humans, but with horses.
The two creatures were not unlike when you can right down to the 
mechanics of motion.  Catherine felt that she was competant to 
perform any of the surgeries she had completed with equines on 
humans.  And she *had* completed four years worth of courses on 
human medicine while studying at Starfleet Academy.
'Well,' she thought, tsk-tsking at the Romulan efforts yet again, 'I 
just might have an interesting proposal for Mr. Wilson once he 
awakes.  I just might.'
        ***             ***             ***             ***
Once Rich had awakened, he had quickly become bored, and had sought to 
secure himself a connection to the REGENT's computer.
"Anna, transfer Ops control to my local terminal."  Rich cleared his throat.  
It was the sore throat that bothered him the most.
[I'm sorry, Rich.  I can't do that.  You have been temporally removed from 
active duty.]  Anna's voice was filled with synthesized sympathy.
"By whose authority?"   Rich was unhappy at that development.
"Mine."  Rich hadn't heard the doctor come in.
"Oh."
"By the way, I'm Dr. Catherine Ledoux.  I don't believe that we've 
been formally introduced," the vet spoke as she stepped up to Rich's 
bedside.  For now, she wasn't about to offer the informality of her 
first name, in an attempt to maintain the authority that her 
position as Head Doctor conferred upon her.
Rich smiled and extended his hand, "Richard Wilson, at your service."  
He appeared to study Catherine for a moment, then shifted his attention 
to watching her work.
Dr. Ledoux was glad to see that Lt. Wilson  was awake, and not only that, he
was sitting upright.  That must have cost him some effort.  The 2O was also
beginning to look a little better, some of the mottled purple and bluish
bruises fading under the accelerated healing brought about by the regen field.
No doubt the Lt. was eager to get out of sickbay and back to work, 
without pausing for a moment to consider his health.  And he said as much.
"You know, Doctor, I'm really OK now.  If it's all the same to you, I'd 
really like to get back up to the bridge...  Or at least back up to my 
office...  Maybe even just a PADD with an active data link..."  He 
stopped talking.
Catherine wasn't about to let Rich get to work.  Yet.  This was one 
circumstance where Catherine lost a bit of her natural shyness.  She 
was confident in her skills as a physician and knew where her authority 
lay.  When it came to medical matters, she wasn't afraid to speak out.
As the doctor examined the medical readouts, reassured by what she 
saw, she addressed Rich, giving him a timid smile.
"You had some severe internal bleeding that I had quite a time trying 
to repair.  I certainly wouldn't want you running off and ruining all 
my hard work, now would I?"
Catherine lowered her glance, blushing at how stupid she sounded and 
returned her attention to the screen displaying Rich's medical data.
Rich smiled again, his expression indicated that he was thinking about 
some past event.
"Well...  I do have this habit of running off and getting into 
trouble.  Can't you at least let me get out of here to gather some of my 
belongings out of my quarters?  If I'm down here too long, this entire 
ship will fall apart around us.  I'm not making any progress here, am I?"
Catherine sighed.  She did not want to hear any arguments from the 
young man.  And he _was_ young, several years Catherine's junior, 
although to look at her you wouldn't think so.  She tried to put on a 
stern face, one that meant business.
"You're staying right here, Lieutenant, until I certify you fit for 
duty.  Understood?"
"Yeah."  The defeat was evident in his voice, "I'll stick around here, 
and behave, Ensign."
Ensign.  Well, well.  Was *Lieutenant* Wilson trying to pull rank on 
her?  Catherine tried not to let it phase her.  Granted, she *was* 
still an ensign, but she was also a professional, with many years of 
hard work lying behind the title "doctor" that she had earned.  She 
was surprised he hadn't questioned her medical abilities.  After all, 
she was just a simple vet!
Hoping that her momentary discomfiture hadn't shown itself, she tried 
another question.
"So, how are you feeling?"
The mischievious look returned, "Now that you ask...  I've got on itch 
on my back that I really can't seem to reach...   Just kidding!  You 
know, you're a lot more fun than Trahken or Seval.  Come on, smile for 
Rich.  You don't have to play Mean Doctor all day."
That brought a tiny grin to Catherine's lips.  "Mean Doctor."  What a 
character!  Catherine couldn't help but smile. It would no doubt prove to 
be quite interesting having  Lt. Wilson resting in sickbay.
"But to answer your question, I feel fit for duty."  He grinned.
'Why did I even bother asking?' Catherine thought to herself, shaking 
her head. She didn't expect an honest response to her query.  In her 
experience, patients generally denied any pain or problems they were 
suffering in an effort to escape the physician's ministrations.  That's 
why it was the doctor's duty to make sure that their charges were 
sufficiently healed before letting them on the loose again.
As she glanced over the readings once again, Catherine addressed her 
patient in her best "I'm the doctor and I know what's best for you" 
voice:
"Now, try and get some rest and let your body's natural healing 
processes do thier job.  Rememeber, the more cooperative you are, the 
sooner you'll be out of here."
And without even pausing to listen to any response that Rich might 
make, Catherine spun on her heal and headed towards her office.
Catherine was brimming with curiosity about the reconstructive 
surgery and the cybernetic arm implant that Rich had undergone, but 
she was just a little wary of questioning him about it.  Perhaps 
she'd take a look at his medical records first, see what they said.  
She just hadn't had time to do so since returning aboard the Regent.
Then maybe, if her inquisitive mind still wasn't satisfied, she'd 
approach the Lt. about it.  If she could get up the courage to do so.
Sighing, Catherine knew that she'd have to find the gumption somewhere.
        ***             ***             ***             ***
Rich watched as the doctor left him.  She was nice enough: friendly, 
professional, and not too hard to look at.  She was his idea of the ideal 
doctor, yet he reminded himself, she's a vet.
He raised his hand to his face.
"A vet maybe, but damn, she has good hands."
[I think you hurt her feelings, Richard.]
Rich frowned at the nearest computer terminal, "Who asked your opinion, 
Anna?"
[I'm sorry for involving myself in your personal matters, but I think 
that your attempt to pull rank on her was unacceptable.]
"She was being condescending."
[And that gave you the right to behave that way in return?]
"You know a lot about human psychology for a computer!"
Anna didn't respond.
"Great, now I've upset two women today."
Scene: USS REGENT: Dr. Ledoux's Office
Dr. Catherine Ledoux sat down at her desk, shaking her head at 
impossible patients who always thought they knew what was better for 
themselves than their physician did.  Catherine had yet to encounter a 
patient who would listen to doctor's orders without question.  No 
matter how seriously injured or sick the person might be, unless they 
were unconscious,  they always insisted that they were hale and healthy, 
ready and raring to go.
However, the effects of too much too soon usually meant a longer 
recuperation time in the long run.  But somehow, most people 
just couldn't wrap their heads around that idea.  It was always go, 
go, go, work, work, work, and this was especially true in Starfleet.
As these thoughts drifted through the doctor's head, she sat down at 
her computer terminal, the medical files of the senior staff already 
called up for her perusal.  Oh yes, that "anticipatory computer 
system" that everyone addressed as Anna. "Thank you Anna," Catherine 
stated, after all, everyone else talked to the computer, why shouldn't 
she?  Then she delved into Lt. Wilson's medical records.
Well, the medical file was of some help, but not much.  Basically the 
records stated that Lt. Wilson had been injured while completing repairs in 
a workpod.  The Lt. had been exposed momentarily to a vacuum when the 
small craft was damaged.  His face, left shoulder and upper left arm 
had been crushed in the accident.  The collar bone, shoulder blade and 
upper arm had been replaced with a cybernetic implant, sheathed in Lt. 
Wilson's own muscle and flesh.  So at least the incident was documented. 
But that didn't help relieve Catherine's curiosity.
And something about the young lieutenant's cavalier attitude 
suggested to Catherine that it wouldn't be easy to get him to talk 
about the incident under the best of circumstances.  And these, most 
certainly, were not the best of circumstances, not with Catherine so 
shy that she didn't even know if she'd be able to ask the questions, 
much less get any sort of straight answer to them.
Well, she'd just have to bite the bullet and ask Mr. Richard Wilson 
himself.
Scene:  USS REGENT: Sickbay
Doctor Ledoux proceeded to the biobed where Lt. Wilson was resting. 
He was awake and up and evidently just itching to get out of sickbay.
As Catherine approached, Rich grinned up at her.
"So, can I leave yet Doc?"  That disarming smile was on his face.
Catherine had the strangest feeling that she was going to be saddled 
with that nickname, first Ric and now Rich calling her "Doc".  She 
had always been "doctor" or "Catherine" to everyone except...  She 
quickly shoved that idea out of her mind and began an intense 
scrutiny of the Lt's medical data.
Rich had caught the momentary flicker of pain that had crossed 
Catherine's face.
"You all right, Doc?"
"I'm fine," she said, nervously tucking a piece of her long, brown 
hair behind her ear.  "The question is, how are you doing?  And don't 
give me that 'I'm fine.  Let me go back to work.' attitude.  I can't 
help you if you're fighting me every step of the way."
Catherine normally wouldn't have been so brash.  She was more 
disturbed by that random thought than she had thought possible.  
Gathering herself together, she tried to focus on the reason she was 
here.  She was going to ask Rich about the arm.
This was not going to be easy.
"You know," she began, "A lot of the work that I had to do on you aboard 
the Ming resulted from some previous poorly done surgery that came apart 
under stress.  Any doctor I know could have done a better job."
Well, that was a start.  She paused for a deep breath, staring down at 
the floor, definately not wanting to meet those mischievous eyes.
"The cybernetic implant in your left arm, well, it's doing the job, 
but it's definately of inferior quality.  It could be replaced and I'm 
fully capable of performing the surgery."  There.  That was a safe 
topic.  Easy to stick to.  Catherine waited for a reply.
She wasn't willing to ask him about the Romulan connection.  At least not 
yet.  Eventually.  Maybe.  Then again, maybe not.
Rich considered the offer.  So far, the arm hadn't caused any problems.  
It picked things up.  It put things down.  It could hold a can of cola.  
Plus, he sort of liked the novelty of having Romulan technology as part 
of his body.  It was pretty neat.
"Not that I don't believe that you could do a fantastic job replacing my 
arm, I'm somewhat attached to it.  It's functioning normally.  Plus, if 
you were to replace my arm, that would mean even more time trapped in 
this blasted bed.  That is unacceptable.  As much as it's your job to 
watch over my well being, it's mine to watch over the well being of this 
starship.
"And believe me, it's not as easy as it looks, and to me it always looked 
pretty darned hard."
His answer was honest.  There was no hint of misdirection in it.  Just 
flat out professionalism.
The doctor could respect that.  She knew what hard work was all about.
"Just before, you asked me how I was doing.  I hurt.  My whole body is 
stiff.  My throat feels like the hide of an Eferian Sand Hog.  Plus, in 
the past hour or so, I've developed this pain in my chest..."
Catherine grasped her tricorder and began to scan the Lieutenant, "Can 
you describe the pain?"
"Yes, it's emotional."  Rich flashed his smile.  The Head Doctor snapped her 
device shut and began to walk towards the door, "It hurts because I was an 
ass before.  I mistook your professional bedside manner for something else, 
and I pulled rank in defense.  I'm sorry."
Catherine paused at the doorway.  The doctor was a bit taken aback. 
She didn't quite know what to make of the Lt. now.  Catherine stopped 
for a moment to consider her own words and behaviour.  The vet knew 
she was often heavy handed with her medical authority, simply to 
compensate for her naturally timid nature. It was one of the few 
times when she actually demonstrated a bit of a backbone, her 
patient's well-being always her top priority. Perhaps her concern didn't 
come across correctly.
Now she turned her attention back to Rich, who was addressing her 
once again.
"Also, if I ever do feel the urge to have my arm replaced, I'd be honoured 
if you could do it for me.  Just not now."
Dr. Ledoux was frankly surprised.  She had expected Rich to dismiss 
her reccommendation straight out of hand.  Catherine could, however, easily 
understand that the 2O wanted to get out of sickbay as quickly as 
possible.  No doubt Lt. Wilson was aching to get back to work, despite 
the discomfort he had surprisingly confessed to.  That was another thing 
that had startled Catherine.  He had been perfectly honest with her. 
Still, the doctor didn't feel that Lt. Wilson was sufficiently 
recovered to be restored to active duty.  And she hadn't yet 
managed to ask him about the arm.  The medical file had just left too 
many questions unanswered.  There was an inner battle raging between 
Catherine's intense curiosity and her incredible shyness and timidity.
Then a call came in from the bridge, abruptly cutting short 
Catherine's thoughts. 
The red alert indicators flashed on and Rich noticed the distinctive 
sound of the engines being run up to a high speed...
<< to be continued... >>

Go to messages for March 1997 or Main Archive Page