A Prelude to Changes

Posted on Fri Jun 7th, 2024 @ 6:03am by Lieutenant Astrid Nyx

822 words; about a 4 minute read

Mission: To Boldly Go
Location: Sickbay of the USS Valkyrie
Timeline: Evening, some weeks before transferring to the USS Fenrir
Tags: medicine,

Astrid Nyx pressed the hypospray against Aurelia's neck and marveled, not for the first time, at how strange it still was that this little girl had come into her world. It struck her at the oddest times: the death of the best friend she had ever known had led to this: the closest relationship in her life. Aurelia looked up, dark eyes serious, but betrayed by a small quivering of her lower lip.

"Will I be okay, Mom?"

Mom, thought Astrid. Three years in and it still wasn't something she was used to hearing. She leaned forward and kissed Aurelia on the top of her head. "Of course, baby. Just your allergies, like last time."

"How she acquired allergies on what is essentially a hermetically sealed ship like the USS Valkyrie is quite beyond logic."

Astrid snorted. Turek had come up beside the biobed Aurelia was on, his placid vulcan features betraying nothing more than a slightly quirked eyebrow at Astrid's response. Like all vulcans, T'Ren was smart, logical, calm... and yet often incapable of making the sort of leaps that Astrid found so natural.

"You can't think of any reason?"

"I can not."

Astrid looked back at Aurelia, smiling just a little. "What about if someone snuck into the cargo bay and opened one of the transport crates we picked up on Salvnas?"

"That would be..." Turek paused, and Astrid was pretty certain he had been about to say "unlikely" before he stopped himself. His dark eyes flicked to Aurelia, who was doing her best seven-year-old impersonation of a stuffed animal: perfectly still. "...I see. That would clearly be a very serious violation of protocol."

"Oh, aye. Very serious."

"I'm Soo-ry!" Aurelia wailed suddenly, her calm facade finally shattering. "I didn't mean to. But I wanted to see what was in them, and one of the bags broke, and..."

"And there were probably some mold spores." Astrid sighed. "Stars know I'm familiar enough with weird allergies. But, kiddo... you've got to be more mindful, okay? What did curiosity do to the cat?"

Aurelia sniffled but said dutifully: "Killed it."

"That's right. Space is dangerous, okay? Promise not to go in there again."

Astrid took the empty hypo and brought it to the refill stand near her small office door, Turin followed.

"Is not the second part of that saying, 'and satisfaction brought it back'?"

Astrid waggled her eyebrows at him. "Well, don't tell her that, or I'll never keep her to assigned sections." She allowed herself a little sigh. "This is why the transfer would be so good. These intrepid class ships weren't meant to house families."

"Have you not had word back from the USS Fenrir yet?"

"No... not yet. Sorry, sorry... you looked like you had something you needed to ask when you came over?"

"I wished to consult with you on crewman Vex's treatment plan. There are some peculiarities of Andorian physiology that I am not well versed in." Turen handed Astrid a PADD with the medical file in question, and she glanced down the column of notes he had made.

"Mostly fine. But you always want to take into consideration the effects of anticoagulants on the Andorian secondary circulatory system. The computer would probably catch it for you, but it's a bad habit to start letting the machines do your thinking. Always check the crossref for species interaction details, even with something that gets an initial green light for broad-spectrum use."

Taking the PADD back, Turen raised one eyebrow in what was somehow a very different expression than earlier. This, Astrid knew from long experience, was annoyance. Not at her, for Turen was extremely civil, even for a vulcan. But, he was also one of the most fastidious of his people, and he hated making mistakes. "I shall ensure that this error does not happen again, lieutenant."

"I know," she said. She meant it. He would rather chop off a little finger than make the same error twice.

Behind him, Astrid caught sight of Aurelia, now drawing on the little tablet she carried everywhere. Astrid flashed a small smile at Turen. "Give me a moment?"

"Of course."

"Hey sweetie," she said as she approached the biobed again, "how are you feeling now?"

"Better, Mom."

"Good. Just remember to tell me if you feel anything else happening, okay? Especially if you have trouble breathing."

"Okay. Are you busy?" Aurelia looked at Turen, who was busily entering in new notes on his PADD.

"Just little things. What's up?"

"I made a drawing."

Astrid chuckled as she seated herself on the biobed next to her daughter and "ooh'd" approvingly over the drawing Aurelia had made. She could feel the change coming in her bones. If not the USS Fenrir, then something else, though she was hopeful for her application to transfer. It was past time for a change, for both her sake and Astrid's. She was ready for something new.

 

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