A Lot More One On One

[DJ McKinny 0]

The waiting was the worst part.....knowing the patients were coming but not knowing exactly when.

 

DJ McKinny leaned against one of the biobeds near the main entrance and surveyed the Sickbay. It was a huge facility. It had to be in order to service a station the size of Aegis. DJ spent about fourteen months running this Sickbay. Well, it wasn't exactly this Sickbay. Shortly after she left, the station was very nearly destroyed. The damage was so extensive, Aegis was deemed uninhabitable. The crew was forced to relocate until the station was rebuilt. Maybe that's why this Sickbay still felt a little....unfamiliar to DJ.

 

But the waiting felt very familiar. Whether here or in any of the other medical facilities she'd worked in throughout her career, whenever a crisis arose and casualties were involved, waiting for the patients was definitely the worst part of it all. Once they arrived, there wasn't time to think about anything other than the task at hand. But while waiting, one's imagination was free to run wild.

 

DJ tended to imagine things would be far worse than they usually were. But she'd decided long ago it was better to expect the worst. That way, she would be pleasantly surprised if reality proved her wrong. In this particular situation, she knew Aegis had been attacked and the assault was significant enough to rattle the rafters. But she had no idea if there had been any injuries. She wasn't even sure there had been any physical damage.

 

There were also reports of casualties aboard the various ships engaging their enemy, a species known as 8472. DJ had taken a few minutes to research the notorious 8472. If they proved victorious over the Federation task force, there would be no need to treat the wounded. After finishing off the space faring vessels, 8472 would then focus their wrath on Aegis. The entire station and it's personnel would most likely be lost.

 

But she had no reason to believe such a thing would happen. It had been quiet for the last fifteen minutes or so and that was a good sign. Quiet usually meant the enemy had been repelled, at least for the time being. DJ quietly wondered exactly what was going on in the dark void beyond the station's bulkheads. Was the battle proceeding well? Or was the enemy on the brink of conquest? Did the allies have the where with all to defeat 8472? Or did this fearsome species possess superior technology?

 

Her thoughts were interrupted as the main doors swished open followed by the sounds of urgent voices and hurried footsteps. DJ pushed away from the biobed and walked briskly toward the gurney as the corpsmen rushed the newly arrived patient into Sickbay. The first patient in would be her responsibility.

 

She frowned as she approached the gurney. Her patient was a young Trill male, probably unjoined. The midshipman had obviously been in the wrong place at the wrong time. His left leg was completely gone as was his left forearm. His abdomen had been sliced open as cleanly as if a surgeon had used a scalpel on it. The internal injuries were so extensive, DJ quietly figured the odds of the patient surviving the necessary surgery much less a protracted recovery.

 

But she had to try. If luck was on their side, they just might pull it off. "Move him to surgery," she ordered, stepping back to watch as the corpsmen hustled the patient away, a team of nurses and medical assistants close on their heels. "Get him prepped and start an encephalogram as well."

 

DJ's frown deepened as she hurried to prepare for what would probably be an hours long surgery to save this young Trill's life. She was glad she'd imagined the worst. At least she wasn't shocked by this dreadful injury or the possibility there would be more just like it.

 

But she was also relieved. She no longer had time to think about what was going on outside, to wonder if they were winning or losing. From this point on, her only concern would be her patient. The surgical unit was now her battlefield and it would be an uphill fight....just as daunting and nerve racking as the confrontations those starships had with species 8472.....and a lot more one on one. But it was up to her to win this one. And the only way to succeed was remain confident that victory could be achieved.

 

A few minutes later, DJ McKinny entered the surgical bay to find everyone in place and ready to go. "We'll take our time," she said calmly to the assembled team as they got under way. "And remember, he's a mess but we're here to save him. Defeat is not an option."