Bury the Past

Posted on Mon Aug 7th, 2023 @ 12:05pm by Beya & Dr. Izriel "Jaxx" Lonn

Mission: Fractures
Location: Sickbay
Timeline: Backpost: Jaxx's First Days
2735 words - 5.5 OF Standard Post Measure

On any given day, Izriel Lonn liked to consider himself a patient man. On his better days, he preferred to see himself as an open-minded and accepting practitioner, one who had dedicated the last few years of his career to medicine outside his own people's physiology. Racism as a general concept wasn't as prevalent amongst Betazoids as some other species, or perhaps a more pragmatic definition would have been to classify their methods for stereotyping to be somewhat beyond the physical, and even cultural. Psionic awareness tended to enhance uniqueness and that, coupled with societal expectations that veered strongly towards egalitarianism, meant that he'd never really considered the possibility of being conflicted over potential patients. He wasn't even sure now that his feelings were strongly negative, just that he'd been surprised to have paused for consideration at all. Surveying the personnel manifest had been a routine task designed to ensure he was prepared for individual requirements. He'd gone into it expecting it to be detailed, but relatively mundane. He knew the Mary Rose had a decently diverse crew.

What he hadn't expected was a Cardassian.

Logic made trepidation understandable. The occupation had left deep scars, a fracture in the telepathic infrastructure of Betazed that would take several generations to heal entirely. As long as those alive remembered the war, their experiences influenced the overall harmony and sat as a gentle discord easily provoked around certain anniversaries. Jaxx wasn't tempted to hold this particular individual responsible for the transgressions of political representatives from his planet but, aside from lingering sensitivity, the doctor was left with the far more practical problem of being more or less ignorant of Cardassian anatomy. It was hardly surprising that he'd never encountered one requiring his services whilst back home but that didn't help him now.

During his initial discussions with Reynolds, she had outlined her intention to train the two junior medics. Somewhere amidst that discussion had been reference to a training area in a nearby science lab but Jaxx had yet to locate it, seeing no need to intrude. Now finding himself perhaps in need of the facilities, he rose from his desk and moved into the main area to see if the senior doctor was available.

Having recovered from her good-bye party on Hysperia, Beya had decided the best thing for the next morning let down was to get back to the work she had come here to do. She opened the training program, finding where she'd left off and started reviewing when someone new walked in. She knew several new people had signed on, so assumed this must be one of them. "Hello," she greeted brightly. "Can I help you?"

One thing that Jaxx was occasionally accused of was not paying enough attention to the moment. Introspective by nature, he was easier to sneak up on than a lot of other telepaths, at least when he was preoccupied. He had sensed Reynolds moving around earlier but realised now that it wasn't her presence he was registering now. Well-versed in composure recovery, he stopped short only for a split second before adjusting and moving on. "Hopefully we can be of assistance to each other over the course of the next few months. Beya, right?" Studying the manifest had other perks. "Izriel Lonn, contracted into the surgeon's position for now." A faint smile made his eyes crinkle at the corners. "At least until one of our up-and-coming trainees surpasses me."

"Pleased to meet you, doctor," Beya replied, taking his hand. She smiled at the last comment. "I imagine you may be here awhile then. I've learned a lot from Dr. Reynolds, and from Dr. Vinny before her, and various others on other ships, but it's all been piece meal until now. So it'll be some time before I have enough documented training for a Federation medical school to not laugh at my application."

A thoughtful frown worried the Betazoid's brow. "Most of us, at the start of our training, don't have very much hands-on experience. I would have thought your application would have elevated near top of the pile, if what I'm reading of the medical logs is any indication of what you've had thrown at you."

"Yeah... not so much." Beya sighed. "Hands on apparently doesn't count when you 'lack valid educational credentials'. I didn't have any formal education - just what my mother taught us. Everything else I either read on my own or learned assisting the doctor on my uncle's ship. And he didn't have an actual medical degree, so his recommendation wouldn't have meant anything to a medical school, especially one outside Orion space."

For a moment, Izriel managed to look both sympathetic and thoughtful. Setting aside his own plans for the moment, he moved back a step and hefted himself up onto one of the new biobeds to sit. "Have you given any thought to specialisation? Granted," he continued, "that may involve having to leave the ship for a while but aspirations beyond the basics usually find a way to dump you in the thick of academic diversion." He smiled. "That shouldn't be enough to stop you though, what Reynolds has set up here is actually far more extensive than I'd have expected given the distance-from-stodgy-old-professors aspect."

Beya paused at that, thinking. "You know, I hadn't really thought that far. Just becoming a ship's doctor has been the goal for so long, I never really thought past that." She did now, though honestly she probably didn't even know all the specialties available. "he first thing I ever learned about medicine, was from my aunt. she taught me about Orion herbs, the way to use them as medicine or..." she stopped, knowledge of Orion drugs and their applications was probably not a subject the doctor would see in a positive light, "...well, for reaction. Anyway, I guess the medicine side of that has always interested me."

"It's a dynamic field of study," Jaxx agreed, still looking pensive. With his legs dangling, he paused for a moment to consider the Orion's situation. He didn't proclaim to be an expert on her species and, having already had a similar discussion with their pilot, tried not to fall prey to stereotypical expectations. In a very generalised kind of way, however, he could see how life might not have afforded her the same opportunities that had been practically forced down his throat. "Perhaps it would be better if I were to ask if there's any way I can be of assistance while I'm here?"

That was an unexpectedly humble offer. Beya smiled, deciding she liked him. "Well, Dr. Vinny used to let me assist. He'd explain what he was doing while he operated, and he even let me close a couple times." She lifted her chin proudly. "He said I had good hands."

Purse-lipped, Jaxx considered the logic. "With any luck," he pointed out, "We won't have many legitimate procedures to draw from initially. I am, however, currently dealing with some short-comings in my own experience. I was hoping to utilise the training space to brush up on some anatomical proficiencies, particularly to deal with our Cardassian colleague should the need arise." He smiled. "I could trade a crash course in how to use the simulation unit for an attempt at guiding you through some surgical techniques."

"Deal! Right this way," Beya agreed brightly, and lead him to the lab now transformed into a training center and began setting up the program. "It's not very hard really, especially for basic anatomy. Just select species here, and any specific organ or system here," she explained pointing to the relevant areas of the screen. "And if you have any questions, just ask. I know a bit about Cardassian physiology. Well, at least the vulnerable points."

The trip had been short enough that the Betazoid was relatively confident he could find his way back without incident. The layout of the ship, for someone very much not used to traveling in them, had been a slight source of confusion a few times already. Jaxx stood for a moment in the centre of the converted lab, hands comfortably rested on his hips, and stuck out his bottom lip in thought. "I'll admit, this is a little more advanced than I expected." He sounded impressed, though given that Reynolds had pointed out that the holographic unit had come from her father's personal collection and had serviced her own tuition many years ago, it was hardly the latest model. Whatever his expectations had been, they had clearly been relatively low. "Okay," he started, squaring up to the training bed. "I see where the patient should be." Squinting, he glanced up at the input display and, as a trial, tapped the first option on the predetermined list. A particularly pale figure, completely naked, shimmered into existence. Unmoved, the doctor simply blinked at his patient.

"Yes, that does appear to be fully-intact Aenar."

"The program gives you an average individual for the species - healthy mid-life adult in 50th percentile for all physical characteristics.' Beya tipped her head, mouth going a little sideways. "For some reason it defaults to male for humanoid species. But you can change that, and vary all the other physical parameters using this section of the panel. You can also select deformities, injuries or disease process results over here," she indicated each panel, tapping through menus to show how options were brought up, "and for injury or disease give it time, percentage progress or stage."

A twitch to the Betazoid's lips didn't immediately give away Jaxx's mirth though a quick glance sideways almost busted him as he wrangled his features into enough of a deadpan to get away with, "A strange idiosyncrasy within the programming, no doubt." It wasn't a direct accusation, he had no reason to suspect the Orion had preferences one way or another, but he had caught the thoughtful look and accepted the humour in the moment without concern. "At the risk of intruding on more of our mechanical friend's historically-motivated quirks, how about you bring me up a Cardassian with a Class 3 intracranial haemorrhage so that we can focus above the shoulders for now." He kept his expression neutral as he added. "Gender identification at user's discretion."

"Then it should be yours," Beya said, and flashed a teasing smile. "The best way to learn is hands on. So, if you want to learn, you should do bringing it up yourself. The selection area is right there."

The cluck of a tongue in mock disapproval preceded the slow shake of the doctor's head. "Hand-passing responsibilities to senior staff, interns grow bolder by the year." It was clearly a returned tease, the Betazoid tapped away at the display without obvious displeasure and paused, just a moment, when the figure who materialized in front of them failed in several key areas to represent the intended case study. For a start, it was a Denobulan, not a Cardassian. Rather more importantly, at least from a certain vantage, the hologram was lacking the intended set of injuries. It wouldn't have taken a skilled physician to notice this; sheer logical conclusion would see a reasonable person arrive at the opinion that a person couldn't possibly be suffering from a head injury if they were, in fact, without a head.

"Ah."

A flash of something about Jaxx's eyes almost accused him of making the mistake intentionally.

Beya suppressed a chuckle. She halfway thought he might have messed that up on purpose just to see if she'd step in and take over. Goddess knew, she'd seen enough men pull that to get women to do things for them. "The control to clear the entry is there," she said, pointing to it. "Try again. I'm sure you'll get it right before long."

Culturally speaking, Izriel probably couldn't be accused of patriarchal prerogatives. Far more specifically, if he'd tried to control the women in his life even the tiniest bit, he'd wind up metaphorically worse off than poor fellow currently occupying the biobed. His motivation was a unique brand of playfulness, an unusually introverted Betazoid's best attempt to remain socially present.

He'd been an awkward teenager.

The next attempt, quite predictably, was far more successful. As the stricken Cardassian shimmered into view, Jaxx moved to stand at the head of the bed and leaned his weight forward on hands placed either side of the hologram. "Cranial bone density would imply that an injury of this severity would be caused by considerable blunt force trauma. I take it the skull is not considered one of a Cardassian's weak points."

"You'd be right on that," Beya agreed, a slight smirk indicating that she fully expected the doctor had known that without any reference to the simulation. "Above the shoulders, it's the nerve clusters in the neck ridges that are your best bet in a fight."

A furrowed brow, a little over-emphasised, only made a tiny dent in the surgeon's concentration. "My intent is to equip myself with skill enough to render aid to our Chief of Ops in the event that he require it." His lips twitched. "I don't intend to attempt sparring with a Cardassian any time soon if I can help it."

"No one does," Beya muttered. She'd never in fact actually sparred with one; she just used her sister's advice on how to deal with any who got too grabby. Which had been a good percentage of the ones she'd met. Granted, that sample was heavily skewed toward the type who showed up in an Orion bar. She hoped the new Ops Chief probably wasn't one of those. "I haven't met the new Chief yet. Does he seem like the sort who might get his head bashed in?"

"I haven't met him either."

There was a gentleness to the doctor's tone, as if the response held an unspoken admission that ran a little deeper than a lack of opportunity. Jeassaho, and his wife for that matter, would have accused him of over-compensating but there was no simple way of addressing the disparity between emotional reflex and logical expectation. He did not want to spend the rest of his life reviling an entire species purely on sight. Unfortunately, aspects of his psyche were not completely on board with the notion.

"But, given this crew's propensity for landing itself in trouble, it feels reasonable to expect he might end up in such a situation." Jaxx glanced across at his assistant and winked, a cheeky deflection. "If it is of any consolation, I will have to add Orion and Romulan to my list of refresher courses. I just thought I'd tackle the biggest challenge first."

"We do get our share..." she agreed with a sigh. However, a perfectly manicured eyebrow rose at the idea that Cardassians were the biggest challenge. Sure, Romulans were close enough to Vulcans that it shouldn't take much refresher for a Federation surgeon, but her own physiology, while humanoid, had enough differences that in past ship positions she'd refused sedation to make sure a doctor actually knew what he was doing. "If it's any help, I have a refresher with the important points on Orion physiology loaded in the main medbay computer."

Not all challenges were a matter of task specifics. In this case, the emotional hurdle counted. Still, Izriel was not a man prone to elaboration when it came to his deeper thoughts, not unless the mood took him, and if he was to be circumspect, there was a very naked holographic man currently bleeding out on his biobed. Psycho-analysis would have to wait.

"One generously-proportioned obstacle at a time," he cautioned, lips pursed once more to control a twitch of mirth. "We might consider that tomorrow's study group." Glancing up, he wore his amusement openly and gestured towards the bed with a dip of his head. "Now, I think our friend here might appreciate a little focus. Relax, sir," he patted the unconscious hologram on the shoulder. "We'll find the Gorn who sat on your head just as soon as we make sure you actually get to keep it."

Recognizing there was something else behind his manner, but not wishing to intrude on what every Orion recognized as a right to keep inner thoughts and feelings to themselves, she simply nodded. "Very well, Doctor. I'm ready to assist."