JDL |aCO, CINT, CMO|Cmdr Dhej & LtCmdr Rinehart & Lt Quoicho|"Surprise"

Posted on 241501.02 @ 3:17am by Commander Tierney Rinehart

Mission: Holy Cow
Location: Sickbay

= E =

Nanee had fallen asleep in her office looking over the lieutenant commander's scans, blood work and medical files mainly with the past medical officers that did her physicals. "Ma'am she's awake." A physician mate said.

"Okay let her know I'll be right there. Oh and let commander Dhej know that Rinehart is awake but keep him in the waiting room until I call for him." Nanee said standing up and reheating her coffee before taking a couple of sips.

"Of course ma'am." The physician mate said as she headed off to do just that.

"Ah commander it's good to see your eyes open again, you scared quite a bit of people." Nanee said with a small smile on her face.

"What happened?" Tierney had lay there, eyes closed and simply listening for what had felt like hours. She knew she wasn't in her office or quarters, and the last thing she could remember was sitting in the lounge with the Admiral's Andorian pet. Needless to say, she'd figured out she wasn't simply laying on the floor there either. The beeps and clicks of monitors were her first clue, then came the muddled whispered voices of various nurses as they sped in and out like humming birds checking on blossoms. Sickbay. While she hated the place, it meant she was safe... For now. It was only when she opened her eyes that they had stayed for any great deal longer and all of them seemed so sickeningly jovial that Tierney felt her gut twist in threat of vomiting. Or was that from the alcohol? She'd never be entirely certain. The only thing that was for sure was the constant throb of her temples and the smiling face of the doctor. 'What happened' seemed like good interlude, especially when given Nanee's quaint opening line.

"You had a couple of drinks, passed out due to alcohol poisoning." Nanee said pulling a seat up near the bed and looking at the commander, "but with your height and weight the amount of alcohol you had in your system shouldn't have caused any of this. So we an some further tests and we found out that you're pregnant and we believe that's enough to have caused this."

A slender brow arched high at the Trill doctor's words and the Starling's head tilted to the left as she tried to absorb what was said. "Wait a second..." Tierney held up her hands to signal a time out. She knew she'd had a couple to drink, knew she'd never engaged in such behavior before. Alcohol poisoning usually hit after several drinks and... "I'm pregnant?" She asked, her lips wrapping around the word as if it were a completely foreign term.

"Yes," Nanee said pulling up the test and results so she could see them in writing, "this here shows that you're with child and I believe that's messed with your body chemistry."

"But that's --" She paused, biting her tongue. It was possible. Mark may have died, but that didn't mean that he was incapable of siring an offspring before he passed and the result of one of those evenings spent before he'd passed seemed all too content to pose as proof. She eyeballed the PADD that Nanee held, reading the results of elevated levels and the rest of the evidence pointing to the fallen Captain's only hope of immortality. "How far do you estimate?" She asked softly, once again looking to the Trill's face.

"About 9 weeks," Nanee said putting the PaDD back in her lap.

"Nine weeks." The redhead nodded, repeating the information to herself. The dates put her back to shortly after Karim had rescued her from the pod Vokar had sent her out in, perhaps even the night they returned. She'd been exhausted, physically depleted by the force used to shock the spooky Vulcan when he touched her and probed her mind -- but Mark had tended to her, seen to it that she rested and the rest of the night was nothing more than a fond memory now cemented forever by the existence of the child budding in her womb. "Listen... This wasn't planned," She began, though her mind soothed her saying 'but maybe its a sign.', "I don't know the first thing about motherhood or how this is supposed to go and I'm..." She sighed, shaking her head. She wasn't alone. Karim would always be there for her, and Zola. Zola was always only a quick subspace call away. "Is Commander Dhej near by? He needs to know." like it or not, he was her friend and also her boss and both mandated that he know what his favorite little ghost was dealing with.

"He is." Nanee said sending a message to the physician mate who called Karim to have him come in, "I don't know anything about motherhood outside of not being like my mother. But trust me you've a lot of support on this ship even though we don't know each other that well I am always here to listen." Nanee said surprising herself especially with everything she went through on Zetari.

---

Karim yawned as he heard the message from Sickbay. Acknowledging the message, he quickly got up and after a quick shower, was dressed and en route to Sickbay.

---

"I can appreciate that." The ghost replied, finally daring to sneak a quick glance down towards her still taught and trim lower belly. "I never considered children. They weren't something supposed to be on my plate, at least not now. Life has a funny way of changing plans, doesn't it?" She asked with a soft sigh of a single celled laugh. Life was ironic to say the very least. Her mother had died when she was so very young, barely able to impart her wisdom on her young daughter, but from what Tierney could remember, the woman was soft, gracious, loving and fair -- so very different to the strong armed nature of her father. A study in opposites. Complete opposites. The greater question was who's parenting skills would she remember? Which would come into play as she toiled along on such a precarious journey? If she was honest with herself, and she rarely was, she'd admit that she was frightened of the prospect of motherhood.

Walking into the area where Tiereny's biobed was, Karim nodded to Quoicho and walked over to the bedside. Smiling slightly, he took her hand in his and said "Hi there Tierney. I'm happy you're ok. I was really worried about you. How are you feeling?"

"As well as can be expected." Tierney replied with a small smile and the sigh of two fabrics brushing against each other as she moved to sit up in the bio bed. She squeezed the Trill's hand as if to cement the truth and prove she was alright, still living and no worse for wear after her run in with the poison conventional wisdom called alcohol. "Karim..." Her voice trailed off and she looked between Nanee and the Commander as if looking to find strength, "I..." She closed her mouth and shook her head trying her damnedest to figure out how to explain her present situation. Her shoulders drooped ever so slightly as she tilted her head and finally brought her eyes to her friend's, "We didn't lose all of Mark after all." She said, "At least not yet and, with some luck, not at all."

Nanee stayed near the door she was only there to monitor the commander as they were still trying to determine how much the pregnancy was gonna mess her body chemistry up. But she was also there for support for both of them.

Still holding her hand, Karim looked at her with a confused expression and said "What do you mean Tierney? Mark is gone, I don't understand what you're saying."

Again Tierney allowed her eyes to flit across to the feminine Trill standing by the door and swallowed the knot building in her throat. "I'm... I'm pregnant." She finally managed to admit, more to herself than to Karim, but meant for his ears all the same. Excuses began to well up, begging for a chance to explain the situation, but she silenced them all and simply searched her friend's face for acceptance and understanding.

Taking a deep breath, Karim gently squeezed her hand and said "O.K, I have to admit that comes as a bit of a shock. You know though I am here for you, however I can be."

"You and me both." She sighed and nodded, returning the squeeze. "I guess... Just continue to be you, that's all I can ask."

Nodding, he said "I will do whatever I can for you, you know that. I hate to ask though, but are you going to be able to continue your duties, or do you need some time off?"

"I need to do my duties, Karim. Mark's murderer needs to be found and I won't rest until we find them. Besides... You need me more than ever given the state of things. I'll let you know when I feel like I'm getting in the way and I'm sure medical will provide some insight?" She responded, gesturing to Nanee standing by the door.

"Understood" Karim replied calmly "When you're up to get back to your duties, I'll need your help preparing for the away team. I believe we're about a day away from the planet."

"Then I'll be there at your disposal later this evening?" She offered, tilting her head slightly.

Smiling slightly, he said "That sounds great. I'll be on the bridge when you are ready. Please join me there." After receiving a nod, he quickly left Sickbay, en route for the bridge.

=/\=End Log=/\=
Commander Karim Dhej
Acting Commanding Officer
USS Enterprise, NCC-1701-F

Lieutenant Commander Tierney Rinehart
Chief Intelligence Officer
USS Enterprise, NCC-1701-F

Lieutenant Nanee Quoicho
Chief Medical Officer
USS Enterprise, NCC-1701-F