A Few Onlies More
Posted on Fri Dec 13th, 2024 @ 1:24pm by Commander Martin Sorenson & Cadet Junior Grade Lien
Mission:
Take My Hand
1215 words - 2.4 OF Standard Post Measure
This ship was too big.
As soon as he thought he knew where he was going, there was a turn or a junction or a dead end, and it was like he had no idea where he was going. Which, was accurate, but the ship didn't have to be so in his face with it.
So he'd wound up on Deck Sixteen, winding his way around as he tried to find the entrance to sickbay. Which, he'd thought he'd found, but had discovered it was a storage closet. Which he'd realized at the point that the door had popped open and a mop handle came falling out to smack him in the face.
He was ready this time. As the door opened, the boy winced and held up a padd to shield himself from...
...nothing, actually.
Cautiously, the boy peeked from out behind the padd and realized that it was just a normal room on the other side of the door. Well, not just a normal room. But it was Sickbay. Which was the room that he was looking for.
Martin noticed the door opening and being near the entrance, looked out. There was a momentary confused pause at seeing no one at eye level, but then he looked down. Ah, right. The transfer list had another Miran. Bracing himself for what he'd come to expect from Jack and Nolan, he nevertheless smiled. "Hello, I'm Dr. Sorenson. I assume you're here for your medical check in?"
Giving a sigh of relief at the lack of attack brooms, the boy started to take a step when a pair of legs met him just inside the door. "Hi," the boy offered, extending out the padd with his orders as he craned his head back.
Wait, he was addressing an officer. "I mean, yes, sir," the boy corrected, as his head finally arrived at the man's face. Then his head tilted to one side.
One... two... THREE!? Wait, was this the senior medical officer?
Doing patient check in?
"Oh, Commander. I mean doctor..." the boy began, then seemed confused. "Do I call you commander or doctor? Or commander-doctor?" he wondered aloud.
Was that important right now? That probably wasn't important right now.
"I thought one of your nurses would... I mean, I'm sure you're busy and all."
"Doctor will be fine, Cadet," Martin replied, suppressing a chuckle. It probably wasn't comfortable for the cadet (and he did believed in trying to put patients at ease), but flustered was a considerably better reaction than he usually got from the Onlies onboard. "And in this case, I just happened to be passing the door when you arrived. But, please, come in. At least for now, I'm not too busy to handle your exam."
The boy took another step inside, letting the door close behind him and falling into step to follow where Commander-Doctor led them. His eyes took in the room, looking from one side to the next as he marveled over how... different it was.
Different from what, he wasn't sure yet. His expectations? Vesta wasn't a new ship, but it definitely didn't seem to be lacking behind.
Distracted as he was, he didn't notice when Martin had stopped, bumping into the man's legs and giving a yelp in realization. "Sorry, Commander... Doctor... sir!"
"It's fine, Cadet. Relax," the doctor said amiably, thinking that in many ways this was a new experience for both of them (and also wondering what Jack and Nolan had been like decades ago when they were cadets). "Just take a seat on the biobed," he paused, considering the height disparity and tapped the command to make a step extend from the bed's base, "and confirm your name for me."
"Lien!" the boy offered brightly, popping up onto the biobed as he added, "It's like Liam, only more -en than -am."
"Pleased to meet you, Lien," Martin replied, careful to get the pronunciation right, as he checked the name against the transfer record - ever since they'd found a glitch in inventory, he'd been double-checking things. "Before we get started, are there any medical issues or concerns I should be aware of? Other than the longevity virus - you're not the first Onlie on the ship, so I'm already up to speed on that one."
The afro-headed boy seemed to ponder the question a moment. "The doctor from the Enterprise said I had sickle cell disease, but that was cured a long time ago," he offered, before adding, "When I got to the Academy, it was strange being the only Onlie. But now that I'm here, its strange not being the only Onlie."
He seemed to think about that for a moment.
"We should probably come up with a better name."
Martin puffed a laugh. "A lot of people use Miran, but I'm reliably informed that Onlie is the preferred term."
"Miran?" the boy echoed, as Martin worked. Then seemed to thaw to the idea as he remarked, "I guess I get that. Some people don't like that its called Earth-Two, so I've heard Miri's Planet, Disney Planet, Kinder Planet... It's, like, guys, I don't think 'planet' needs to be in the name."
"Disney Planet, eh? That's a new one, to me anyway," Martin remarked as he finished the set up and set the medscan running. His impression from the other Onlies he'd known, as well as what he knew of the history, was a fair sight away from any Disney setting; more like an un-disneyfied Grimm fairy tale. "Besides, Disney bought a planet, well, moon anyway, a few years back to terraform into an actual Disney World. Pretty sure they'd sue for infringement if Miri's planet kept using that."
"They have Disney come in and refresh our entertainment from time to time. I guess it takes a lot to entertain us," the boy remarked, his head bobbing from side to side as he gave a smile.
Huh. He hadn't really thought of how the planet was being administered now, but that approach did make a certain amount sense. "I hope you don't get too bored here," Martin joked as he checked the readings. "You seem to be in fine shape, so unless you have any questions, I can let you go."
The boy just blinked. Should he have questions? Was he supposed to have questions? Was this another Academy test? Would there be a quiz later? "Do... people usually have questions?" the boy asked, apprehensively.
The doctor's brows lifted at the worry in Lien's tone, then he realized his mistake and ducked his head apologetically. "Sorry. I meant, if you have any questions, feel free to ask. People sometimes think of things during an exam, so I like to give them the chance. But if you don't have any, that's perfectly fine."
The cadet gave a sigh of relief. "Oh, sorry. I guess I'm still used to everything being a test," the boy offered with a laugh.
"it's okay. I hear the Academy is like that," Martin chuckled as he signed the exam form on his padd. "Anyway, if you have no questions, we're done here. Medical check in approved. Welcome aboard, Cadet."
