TLC

Posted on 28 Sep 2014 @ 4:13pm by Rear Admiral Lirha Saalm & Petty Officer 1st Class Siren Hex Saalm

2,353 words; about a 12 minute read

Mission: Episode 06 - Legend of Souls
Location: USS Galileo - Deck 1, Saalm/Hex's Quarters
Timeline: MD 08 - 0030 hrs

[ON]

The doors to their quarters swished open and Lirha slowly led Siren into their cozy apartment while making sure to keep a steady and supportive arm around her waist as she slowly walked. It'd been a hell of a day so far for the commodore, first having to deal with the re-deployment of away teams and then the emergency beam-out procedure. It had culminated later in the afternoon when the casualties had begun to arrive in sickbay, and upon stepping into the medical facility to check on her crew, she had been appalled to see that not only had Siren been badly injured down in the mine, but she had also been at the mercy of an archaic doctor who had taken the liberty of cutting her open for anyone in sickbay to see when a simple series of vascular and dermal regenerator techniques would probably have healed her just fine. To top it all off, when she had asked for answers, the same archaic -- and apparently foul-mouthed -- doctor had given her attitude, which had nearly resulted in Lirha stunning her and personally dragging her to the brig where she might have remained for the rest of the mission. Aria had been the saving grace in the matter, and the young ensign had thankfully managed to calm and reassure the Orion enough to diffuse the situation.

Now, with Siren's sleepy head rested against her shoulder, Lirha was just glad she was healed and back home, and she slowly walked with her into the bedroom to put her into bed where she could lay comfortably in a familiar and hopefully calming environment. "Almost there..." she whispered reassuringly to her fiance as they approached the foot of their large bed.

"I really am okay," Siren said softly for at least the fifth time, stroking her arm and enjoying the support all the same as she smiled. Siren had, fortunately, been out of it since being beamed out of the mine. Whatever had unfolded in Sickbay, it had completely passed her by. "I just feel whacked," she admitted, shaking her head softly, but it was more like stroking her cheek to Lirha's shoulder. She really did. She felt like she'd been awake five days straight and finally collapsed.

Releasing her grip on Siren, Lirha let her sit down on the bed then began to clear several clumps of tribbles off the comforter and pillows to make room for the both of them. "I am just glad you are out of sickbay and away from that incompetent doctor," she said in return with an annoyed huff. "But now you are home, and you can rest," she added with a warm smile while helping her undress out of her medical garbs.

For once, Siren didn't argue with the help. She was usually fiercely independent, but she felt like a shuttle had run over her so let Lirha do the work. She was pretty floppy anyway, so it was just as well. She curled up on the bed with a sigh of relief. It felt like days since she'd had bed. It was only as she laid back and let her muscles start to relax that Lirha's words caught up with her. "Away from that incompetent doctor?"

"Yes. I came into sickbay to check on the away team as soon as they returned, and discovered you had been hurt down on the planet," Lirha began to explain. "Apparently some sort of lacerations. There was a doctor in a wheelchair working on you -- must have been a new doctor that recently arrived on board -- and she had..." the Orion swallowed a small lump in her through as the visual memory of scene came back to life, "cut you open to perform surgery."

Siren blinked with surprise at the news, looking down to her stomach where she'd been hurt, touching it with a frown. She licked her dry lips, looking back to Lirha, seeing her pain. "Hey," she said softly, reaching out to cover her hands gently. "Hey...all done now," she said softly with a small but reassuring smile.

Sighing and giving her a weak smile, Lirha looked down at Siren's bare belly and creamy skin to double check that the medical staff hadn't left any scarring. She ran a green hand over Siren's stomach to feel for herself, and fortunately she appeared to be as good as new. "Are you sure you feel alright?" she asked. "Is there any pain or weird sensations?"

"I'm a bit numb all over to be honest. Probably just the shock," Siren shook her head softly before laughing gently. "I'm just more drained than anything...I feel like we went out on the away team a week ago and just got back! You sure I didn't miss a few days?"

The Orion glanced at the chronometer before answering. "It has only been a few hours. Ten, to be exact." She then thought of something which might make Siren feel better, and rose from the bed and headed back into the living room for a brief moment. She returned with Siren's favorite pink tribble which they had kept safe in its cage throughout the entirety of the tribble infestation. She sat back down next to her and placed the fluffy creature on her chest which cooed softly. "I brought your friend...I am sure it is happy to see you again, just like me," she said before leaning down to give her a kiss on the lips.

Siren smiled warmly against her lips, one hand stroking the tribble fondly, the other stroking Lirha's hair, not meaning to do it in such a similar way. "Thank you," she whispered with awe at her thoughtfulness. "I missed you too. Has Belle been keeping you company?"

"Yes, for a little while. I let it out earlier today to play for a bit and when it was time to go back in the cage, it took me almost an hour to find it amongst the mess of other tribbles. Apparently the top ledge of the bathroom cabinet is its new favorite spot," the commodore answered with a light shrug.

"How on earth did she get up there?" Siren laughed softly, shaking her head as she let out a gentle breath. "How have you been today?" she asked gently, searching her eyes, clearly wanting to know the truth.

Lirha returned Siren's gaze with her own light green eyes. "Worried," came her simple reply. "I do not want to send you on anymore away missions now. I do not think I could ever forgive myself if something more serious happened to you," she admitted. It was the fundamental reason within Starfleet why superior officers were not technically supposed to become involved with their subordinates, and Lirha now realized this rationale more than ever.

Siren shook her head softly before leaning up to hug her softly, stroking up her back gently to try and soothe her. "It will fade," she promised with a small smile. "I just got unlucky, you know me, I'm tough," she winked softly to her, stroking her cheek. "I'm too damn stubborn to go out like that. Just not enough....style," she tried to put her at ease with humour, unsure if it would work.

Returning her wink with a weak grin, Lirha was happy to hear the confidence in her voice but also wasn't very convinced about sending her back into the mine. Or anywhere dangerous, for that matter. "Well...for now, you are staying on the ship where I can keep you safe," she firmly said. "Once the mission is over and you are feeling better, then you can run off and play in as many caves as you like."

"I won't be running for it," Siren assured in a whisper, moving to curl up close against her, half resting against the warm body. "It was mad down there. Just....I don't know everything turned upside down for a while. A bit of normal would be nice."

The mention of craziness down in the mine peaked Lirha's interest and she couldn't resist asking more about the experience. She'd managed to read a couple after-action reports from some of Galileo's senior officers who had been on the team, but Lirha wasn't exactly sure what to make of the information or whether it was completely accurate. "What exactly happened down there?"

Siren let out a long, shaking breath that seemed to say a lot in its own right. She snuggled close to her, resting her head on the warm, soft, fragrant body. "First off, something happened in our lift, and we all pretty much thought we were going to die as we plummeted down that shaft. Then we went back in to try and find the other team. We found....a decapitated body of a cardie. His body had been...had been dragged into the rock, trapped in it, distorted. We finally found the others, and they told us to get the hell out before those things came back. But people wanted to stay and bloody talk about readings and studying. We should have listened to the others and started to run for that lift the minute we found them."

Siren tilted her head up to see her, shaking her head softly. "The fight was where I got injured," she almost whispered. "When those things found us. Walking dead cardassians, their eyes and brains melted, re-animated by that red energy. They just kept coming...phasers, rifles, even knives did nothing. They just kept coming for us, trying to kill us or make us like that," she shivered. "Shots were fired and the cave in made us tumble to that cavern. I'm sorry, it all got more hazy for me after that, I think I passed out at some point."

Laying down comfortably in the bed before wrapping Siren up in her arms, the commodore then stroked the inside of the red-head's thigh with a comforting and sensual motion. "I wish I had been down there to help," she admitted. "I am not used to simply overseeing assets from the ship...it is hard for me to watch you and the rest of the crew go down into the mine without being able to go down there myself." It had been one of Lirha's biggest challenges recently, the adaptation to mission advisor from her previous role as captain. In truth, she didn't like it very much for the simple fact that she felt less in control of Galileo and its crew, but it was one of the unfortunate negative aspects of her new title.

"Well it's a good job you were, because you were up here to save us," Siren whispered with a soft chuckle, shaking her head gently. "From what I hear, you yanked us out of the fire. Twice actually, from the lift too. Don't underestimate your role, sweetheart, we need you to keep everything together...especially when sanity flies out of the airlock."

"Yes...I suppose everyone has their roles," replied Lirha with a quiet sigh. "I just wish mine was more hands-on. I feel like an intelligence officer again, sitting in front of a console while sorting through unending stacks of PADDs and paperwork. Analyzing everything," she teased.

"But isn't that what you were really, really good at?" Siren whispered with a soft smile, stroking her fingers through her dark hair. "If you really don't like it then the only solution is to plan a hideous crime to get demoted to Captain," she teased with a soft chuckle.

Not a bad idea, actually, Lirha mused to herself. She had never been comfortable with her current rank despite the accolades and prestige that accompanied it, and instead she much preferred her old position as Galileo's commanding officer. "I did pull a phaser on that awful doctor who was tending to you, and I threatened to shoot her and drag her to the brig. Not exactly a hideous crime, but maybe it will work?" she asked after a short moment of reflection.

Siren watched her with surprise as she rubbed her arm, sitting back a little so she could see her properly, her mouth open. "You're joking...right?"

Lirha looked into Siren's blue eyes and simply shook her head slowly from side to side. "No. She told me to f--k off when I asked her for a report on your status, and...well, I became a bit upset," she innocently began to explain. "Especially when she was performing barbaric surgery on you. It almost seemed like she was back in Earth's Medieval period and had forgotten her entire Starfleet medical training."

Siren searched her eyes with awe, holding her breath tight in her chest until it hurt. It...felt so warm, that someone was willing to stand up for her like that when she was at her most vulnerable. She'd never known that before. Not from where she came from. She leant close, kissing her cheek softly as she closed her eyes. "Thank you," she whispered.

"It is the least I could do," came the Orion's reply accompanied by an innocent shrug and a friendly smile. She reached over and rubbed a green hand up and down Siren's bare ribs to comfort her more, then returned her kiss with one of her own on her forehead before curling up tight against her in the sheets. "Time for some rest," she added quietly while yawning softly and beginning to close her eyes.

Siren nodded, letting out a long, heavy breath as she let her drowsiness take over. She snuggled close, her arm draped over the warm, lithe body against her as she breathed in the familiar scent. It was good, to feel alive and loved when she'd been pretty sure she was going to die in that damned mine. It was real...and that was what she needed more than anything for the moment.

[OFF]

--

CDRE Lirha Saalm
Mission Advisor
USS Galileo

PO2 Siren Hex
Intelligence
USS Galileo
[PNPC Blake]

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