It is done

Posted on Sun Jan 5th, 2020 @ 7:21pm by Lieutenant Commander Carolyn Corrigan MD & Lieutenant Commander Ariana Monroe-Wayne
Edited on on Wed Jan 8th, 2020 @ 2:49pm

1,841 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: Episode 102 - The Rising Tide of War
Location: Personal Quarters, Dr Corrigan
Timeline: MD1 1435hrs.

It is done.

Those three little words, which had appeared on her monitor for just a moment, carried Elise Corrigan out of her laboratory and towards the turbolift at the end of the corridor. While not as young as she once was she moved quickly, barking for people to get out of her way.

Oh the confounded contraption seemed to take forever to reach the correct deck! She got turned around - twice! - before she got to the right room.

Once. Twice. Three times she rang the door chime. Nothing.

Her mind was racing. Even, at one point, considering calling security until she heard footsteps approaching. She turned to see a woman approaching, heading straight for her.

Ariana had been trying to get in touch with Carolyn for some time, ever since she'd shared a connection with Carolyn's mind during their recovery from the attack Andy had put them through, Ariana had felt an impression from Carolyn. Something felt wrong, very wrong and Ariana was concerned for her friend.

Having left baby Stacie with Cameron she'd made her way straight to Carolyn's quarters, as she arrived she saw a woman outside she appeared to be of short stature (around 5 ft 5) with silver grey hair, and Ariana hazarded a guess that she could be Carolyn's grandmother. "You must be Elise, Carolyn's grandmother?" Ariana looked at the woman. "Is there something wrong?"

“I’ve been trying to get an answer...” Elise said quickly, tapping the panel again as she spoke.

Ariana gave the woman a concerned look. "Let me" she tapped her comm badge. =/\= Security this is Counsellor Monroe, I need you to override the door lock on Doctor Corrigan's quarters! =/\= A few moments later the door opened giving them access.

The elder woman did not wait. As soon as the door was open wide enough she was on the move. She seemed to give no interest at all to her surroundings, moving straight towards the door which led to the bedroom.

There was just the slightest hesitation in her stride before her steps moved her close enough to the door to open it. She did not wait to see if the other woman followed or not. How long since the message? It felt like hours.

There was no physical explanation for what seemed to be a coldness in the room but she felt it.

At first glance she seemed so peaceful, simply sleeping. Only looking closer was it clear she was not breathing and pick up the blue tint to her lips. It is done...

“Call for medics, quickly!” She called, her long career as a doctor kicking into motion. “She isn’t breathing but there may be time-“

Ariana hit her comm badge. =/\= Medical Emergency in Doctor Corrigan's quarters! I need a medical team here stat!! =/\=

A metallic glint caught her eye and she turned over her granddaughter’s hand, prying free the hypospray. “Oh Carolyn... ”

"I have enough medical training to be able to help, so what do you need me to do?" Ariana looked at Carolyn's grandmother. "Tell me!"

“There isn’t a Doctor I know who doesn’t have a medical bag of their own, find it,” Elise instructed as she began CPR.

Ariana looked around before realising where Carolyn's bag was, going to the closet she pulled out the bag, passing it across to Elise who set it down. "What do you need?"

“Take over,” Elise barked as she pulled open the kit, half the contents spilling out. She rummaged, loading a hypo and administering two doses in quick succession. Refusing to dwell on the fact it was her granddaughter. She looked over her shoulder as the door opened and a medical team rushed in.

Someone guided her away from the bed and into the lounge where she sank into a chair, hands now shaking oh so slightly. “Thank you,” she managed after a moment. “I’m sorry, I didn’t catch you name ...?”

"Ariana Monroe, I'm Chief Counsellor." Ariana looked at Elise before her attention was drawn away.

“Counsellor, we are doing a transport out,” Doctor Mendez called through. “You can meet us there.”

"I'll be there shortly Doctor." Ariana responded before turning her attention back to Elise. "You were already outside and you were worried, how much do you know about what's happened to Carolyn?"

Elise seemed visibly shaken as she shook her head, “I had come by to hope we could have dinner. With Doctor Hades being unwell she’s worked insane hours and then that boy, Leo or whatever, he left. All or it on top of her mother passing...”

All of which was true to her mind. Just not entirely so.

"No" Ariana shook her head. "I don't believe Carolyn would do this. She has too much to live for! I don't know what really happened here, but I intend to find out!"

“Well, when she is awake I am sure we will find out, won’t we,” the woman replied uneasily. “And you? You just happened to be stopping by?”

"No" Ariana shook her head. "Carolyn and I have a...connection of sorts, I sensed something was wrong so I came straight here."

“What does that mean? Connection of sorts?” Elise replied impatiently as she pushed to her feet, “never mind, I need to see my granddaughter. Now.”

Ariana nodded. "Very well, I'll escort you there." Ariana walked alongside Elise as they departed Carolyn's quarters.



Sickbay

With strict instructions to the medical staff, Doctor Mendez made his way towards the waiting area with one of the nurses close behind. There was no outward sign of the concerns which were plaguing his thoughts, his expression almost impossible to read as he approached Counsellor Monroe and Professor Corrigan.

“Professor, Counsellor. First, I would like to assure you that Carolyn is improving steadily. We have been been able to counteract most of the sedative and she is breathing on her own.”

“I’m waiting,” Elise said wearily, “for the rest. You are clearly still concerned-“

Mendez bit back a retort. Bedside manner was not his thing. He was a surgeon first and foremost after all. “She was awake, briefly, very briefly. While it may pass when the rest of the sedative wears off, she did not recognise me or any of the team. And she knows us all. I will monitor but it may suggest a more serious underlying issue.”

Elise nodded, “I can examine her myself. Later. For now I should be with her, I am sure she will recognise me.”

“Nurse Eru, please,” Mendez said as he gestured towards the nurse who had been hovering in the doorway. “Counsellor, a moment?”

He remained silent as Elise headed out of the room, waiting until the door slid shut. “I need to ask what happened. I’m in a difficult position here, I should be reporting this to Hades but he’s in no fit state. I’d like some more facts because things do not add up. And we both know, if she did this to herself then Starfleet Medical will -“

He sighed, sitting down beside Ariana, “the hypospray was not one of ours. The sedative strong enough to take out a full bloodied Klingon but one we have not dispensed for over twelve months. I checked. From the amount in her system I’d say she took it perhaps five minutes before you called us. But I noticed something else.

Ariana frowned as she looked at Mendez. Something was very, very wrong here. "What is that?"

“Blood,” he told her. “Under one of her fingernails. It isn’t proof of anything but it gives me doubt. Enough that I wanted to try and speak to her. Counsellor, she has no memory of what happened. Or of the almost two years. It was distressing her so we had to ease up on our medication and reduce our medication. I’ve never known a sedative to do that. It would suggest a level of oxygen starvation or trauma which doesn’t match what I’m seeing.”

"So it's possible that someone else had a hand in what's happened to her?" Ariana sighed. "Ever since what happened to us with Andrew Ignatious and I shielded Carolyn's mind from him, I've felt a...connection with Carolyn. I went to her quarters because I felt something was wrong. There has to be more to this!"

“I’m inclined to agree or at least keep an open mind,” Mendez told her.

"Is there any outward sign of mental trauma? Any head wound?"

“None,” Mendez confirmed, “I’ve called Dr Harris to come in. Technically, he is our senior medic and he’d want to know anyway.... you said you sensed something. When was this? Just before you called us?”

"No" Ariana shook her head. "It was way before that, I was in my quarters at the time. Something just felt...wrong! She felt in distress."

“Then that had to be before she took the sedative. We were extremely fortunate as it was, another couple of minutes and we would not have saved her,” Mendez said with confidence. While not relevant to his patient care, he pressed on, “Did you try contacting her before you went to her quarters?”

"Several times" Ariana nodded. "I got no answer, that's why I went down to her quarters to look for her. Strangely enough her grandmother was already outside, she seemed extremely concerned."

“You think she knew?” Mendez asked incredulously. He exhaled sharply, shaking his head, “alright. I need to speak with Harris. Have a think about what time you tried to first get in touch, it might help us piece together what happened. I’ll also make sure Professor Corrigan has limited access. Someone will be there at all times. So help me if this is wrong, she is not a woman you want angry with you.”

"She can be as angry as she damn well likes!" Ariana sighed. "I don't trust her. However....she did seem genuinely concerned. If she is involved in whatever has happened, she's regretting it now."

“I’m sure it will all come out,” Mendez assures her. “I would appreciate it if you could look in on Carolyn. If you have this connection with her perhaps it will help. Other than that, I guess we’d need to try some old fashioned things to jog her memory.”

Ariana nodded. "I'll stay for as long as I'm needed, it might help to bring Stacie down at some point, Carolyn loves her."

“I also need as much help as possible keeping this away from Hades eyes and ears,” Mendez added. “I’m not willing to jeopardise his recovery and you know Hades.”

"Don't worry about Hades." Ariana offered a smile. "I can take care of Hades if needs be, I can occupy his mind with other things to think about."

“I’ll need to remember that,” Mendez said with genuine respect. “Okay, time to get back to the madness.”


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