Drama Queen

Posted on 05 May 2021 @ 8:40am by Lieutenant C'Tora Kuroka & Lieutenant Xu Chang Lau & Lieutenant JG Oliver Stevens

Mission: Mission 5 - Season of the Witch?
Location: Sickbay
Timeline: MD 5 @ 0930
2098 words - 4.2 OF Standard Post Measure

ON

Xu entered sickbay feeling out of sorts yet not ill in the conventional sense of the phrase. Since the colony she had been having feelings of undirected anger towards those around her, her sex drive had increased but had changed from her usual preferences to something certainly not Xu and these changes were starting to concern her. To that end she was going to the one person who might be able to put a stamp on what was wrong, or right with her. C'Tora, her friend she never expected to find.

Oliver was at her side, she having attempted to explain her troubles to him and just lost her temper with him for his lack of understanding... She simply was not herself.

The doors to sickbay allowed them through and she started casting her eyes about in the hopes of catching sight of C'Tora.

C'Tora was hunched over a medical monitor and tapping data into a PADD, He sat up and rubbed his eyes. " I think I could use a break. " He said as he let out a slight sigh. He stood and turned and spotted Xu and smiled. " Welcome Xu, How are you doing today my friend? "

"Doc," Oliver said. He was concerned about his girlfriend but he didn't exactly understand what she was experiencing. So he had suggested sickbay. That of course seemed to make her more angry but she had agreed so here he was as moral support. He could think of a million other things he would rather do than be stuck in sickbay. One of them they had been engaging in before she had suddenly got upset. He briefly wondering if something down on the planet had rattled her subconsciously? Perhaps he should have suggested a trip to see True instead.

With the lack of response C'Tora cocked his head to the side and gave a curious look. " Is something the matter? " He asked with concern in his voice.

"Would I be in sickbay you idiotic rodent if there wasn't something wrong!"

Her voice dripping with caustic sarcasm yet a second later the anger evaporated and Xu returned, panic stricken. "Doc, help! I don't know what's wrong. I... I don't understand what's happening!"

"She did that earlier as well. Like she was suddenly a different person. Angry, sultry ... well I liked the sultry till she got ... erm pushy," Oliver said flushing. He grabbed her hand, "Xu its going be okay. We are going to figure out whats going on. Just stay in there okay."

"Pathetic imbecilic!" she slapped away his hand and dropped down into a chair, crossing her right leg over her left and letting it bob u and down almost playfully as she played with her hair.

C'Tora began taking tricorder reading. " I don't believe it's anything Viral, or at least nothing I'm detecting at this time. When did this begin to manifest symptoms? did you come into contact with anything out of the ordinary? Receive or buy anything new or perhaps eat something different? If so please let me know so that we might isolate it and test it. "

He checked his tricorder again and frowned. " Your synaptic readings are unusual at this time. First they're normal and then wildly fluctuate, this is rather odd. We're going to need to run some test to find out what's wrong. "

"Maybe I'm just tired... All I've eaten that was new..." she thought for a moment. "The fruit on the planet surface. I don't think I've come into anything out of the ordinary and you treated us all for the virus there. The only thing new is a prize from a raffle back on the Starbase but any number of people would have handled that before me!"

Xu was feeling more like herself again, and focusing on something like the questions C'Tora was asking seemed to focus her even more.

"Maybe I just need some time to sleep and relax!"

"Hopefully as this calling me names is going to get old fast," Oliver commented.

Xu reached out to take Olivers hand in hers, tears welling in her eyes. She was hurting him and that was the last thing she had wanted to do. He meant more to her than she had realised until this moment.
"What tests do we need to do Doc... Lets get started!"

C'tora stroked his chin for a moment as he thought. " The fruit from the planet, Do you have any more of it? If so, bring a piece by so I can test that. That way we can either add or eliminate it as being a suspect item as a cause for this ailment. " He paused briefly. " And you say you won something in a raffle at the Starbase? What is it? You may what to bring that by as well."

C'Tora placed two neural transceivers on Xu's forehead. Please lie back on the Bio-bed and I'll begin a deep scan of your neural functions and we'll see if we can't figure this out. This will take about twenty to thirty minutes and I'll be with you here the entire time, I'm not going anywhere. I want to help the two of you and I don't like seeing my friends suffer or even feeling out of sorts." He gently placed a hand on both Xu's and Oliver's shoulder. " We WILL get to the bottom of this, That I promise you. "

Xu settled back onto the bed, worried but feeling a little more at ease that the Doc and Oliver where with her. At the same time she also could not feel the nagging animosity towards everything and everyone anymore. Maybe it had just all been in her head, tired from the mission perhaps!

C'Tora looked up at Oliver. " So Oliver, What is this item that the two of you won at the raffle? It wasn't anything naughty or embarrassing was it?

Tsk Tsk.. It's never good to leave a large cat curious. "

"It was a tiara," Oliver said. "And aside from some interesting role play that we have enjoyed from it there's nothing obscure about it."

"If anything Doctor, it seemed to start when I was on the planet".
Xu offered, still clutching Olivers hand tightly drawing some strength from her contact with his large rough and rugged engineers hands. The it hit her, had he really just said what he had said to not only another senior officer but her friend. Her eyebrows shot up as her cheeks reddened and she snatched her hand from his before playfully striking his stomach. "Did you have to mention that now... I have to work with him!"

"Hey I didn't tell him what the roleplay involved," Oliver said, "And he's a doctor. Hes pretty much seen and heard everything. And then he's married as well. Hes a man of the world sweetheart."

"Doctor please forgive my boyfriend if you would... He doesnt get out much!"
A little more of the humour and humility that made Xu who she was started to return as her cheeks flushed even more crimson.

"That's true. I spend a lot of time distergrating and reintegrating peoples transporter pattons. The transporter bay gets an awful lot of action," Oliver said with a grin. "And also she doesn't let me out much," he joked. "But I'm not complaining there."

The redness just burned her cheeks now, lighting her up like a red alert light during a Borg attack but she stayed on the biobed allowing the Doctor to run his tests... Oliver would pay later!

C'Tora gave Xu a surprised and amused look. " Your right Xu, You do have to work with me. And you should also know that as the CMO of this ship, what transpires between a doctor and patient is privileged information. The only way that information goes beyond me is if what has occurred endangers the safety or morale of the ship and crew. Now how often does that happen? "

He gave a slight chuckle. " Besides I've heard things that would make a Klingon blush, Not that you'd ever hear them from me. If I started talking about things like that, how many people do you think would come to Sickbay if they couldn't trust their Doctor? I'd be the most hated person on the ship, Agreed? Now you said you noticed it first started when you were on the planet, How did it start exactly? "

"Could I just say it was a very... erm... Aggressive form of diplomacy!"
She was still very embarrassed about the entire thing and had yet to speak to the Captain about it. She half expected to be demoted for it. The only thing she took solice in was that it had made little to no negative impact on the mission itself.

" Alright... This diplomacy. Uh.. How long did it last? Briefly or prolonged? Did it start slowly or just hit you out of the blue? " C'Tora asked. " I need to understand how this is developing as to figure out a cure for it. "

She was suddenly feeling very sheepish about the entire thing, and she really did need to speak to the Captain about it because this could alter the course of her career in Starfleet... or end it!

"I was feeling a bit frustrated with the traders and merchants in the market... Gwen and I only seemed to be treading water rather than making headway and something came over me and I just lashed out and broke this one mans nose... I'm not really sure what happened or even how it happened!"

“You didn’t tell me about that,” Oliver said concerned. “Maybe it was something on the planet affecting you?” He suggested, “Did you eat any food? Drink anything? I worked with a Bolian once who ate something on Sengentii 4 and dissolved into giggles for 6 hours. Something down there must have affected you.”

"I did have some fruit from one of the market stalls... It was a mango, cucumber, potato thing... tasted very nice... similar to a Bajoran mopa Fruit!" she couldn't see how that would have been the cause of it though. Gwen and Amelia had both enjoyed it as well.

C'Tora closed his eyes and massaged his temples. " Did I hear you right? You lashed out and broke some poor man's nose? " He let out an exasperated sigh. " This is VERY out of character for you Xu, That and your synaptic pattern is slightly off and that calls for further investigation. "

He turned to Oliver. " Lieutenant Stevens." He held his hand out to place two small devices in Oliver's hand. " These are low yield synaptic inhibitors. If she starts to show any signs of outward violence, place one in the middle of her forehead and run your finger down it to activate and get her to sickbay. Don't worry it's only suppressing the violent behavior, all other functions will remain normal. "

She was taken aback by the Doctors words. Did he really believe she could be a danger to others or even herself, or Oliver?

Oliver took the offered devices. "Okay thanks doc. Im sure it will all be fine sweetheart," he offered to Xu.

C'Tora looked to Oliver. " I don't think I have to tell you to stay close to her, She's going to need your love and support before this is all said and done. " He turned and looked directly into Xu's eyes. " Xu you are one of the most sensible and level headed people I know, But I want this in place as a safety precaution. Not that I think you would act out, But until we get to the bottom of this and figure out what is going on this should be a good safety measure. If you feeling out of sorts you come to sickbay or to Oliver so he can help get you here. Ok? "

"Thank you Doctor!" she offered, still in shock at what had been said and offered by the Doctor. All she wanted was to get back to her quarters and hide away from the world. "May we go?"

" Of course you may go. " C'Tora stroked his chin as he studied the monitors readouts. " I need to study these readouts and run some simulations on the computer to figure out where we need to go from here and the best course for your treatment, Get some rest and take it easy for a few days and we'll talk some more later. "



OFF:

Lt. Oliver Stevens
NPC Jon Reynolds

Lt(JG). Xu Chang Lau
Chief Operations Officer

Lt(JG) C'Tora Kuroka
Chief Medical Officer