Chief Counselor's Duty Log #3 - Pangaea's Aftermath

Posted on Sun May 29, 2016 @ 6:14am by Lieutenant JG Noelle Bennett M.D.

542 words; about a 3 minute read

I suppose I would be remiss if I didn't start this log with the mention of my first away mission since I've been assigned to Deep Space Five. Even now, after I've been given some time to think on it, I'm still having a hard time making sense of it. Was it a dream? Hallucination? At times, it certainly felt like both. What started as a camping trip to promote diplomatic relations between the powers interested in Pangaea turned into a struggle for our lives and the lives of others. Initially, I thought the worst thing that could happen would be two ambassadors from different delegations going after one another. There was certainly enough snark to go around. Of course, I'm not trying to minimize the seriousness of two or more ambassadors getting into a physical altercation during a diplomatic mission, but it certainly wouldn't be the first time it happened and I'm sure it wouldn't be the last.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, as I came to realize, that's when the rain came. At first, I was irritated. The only thing worse than trying to camp with cranky ambassadors was to camp with cranky ambassadors in the rain. After a few moments, however, I thought perhaps this could be a welcome development. Everyone has survival and protective instincts, and I thought perhaps the rain would force everyone to work together for a common goal long enough to quit their bickering.

I guess it worked, somewhat.

A group of us ended up entering a cave for shelter. I expected to find predators of the furry or scaled variety, I never expected to find a stone sentry of sorts. What happened next is a bit of a blur, but whether dream or hallucination, I distinctly recall the hairs on the back of my neck standing up. I can still feel it, honestly. We were in danger, and yet, we were also being confronted with hundreds of people in need of medical attention. It was truly overwhelming, and I haven't felt that emotionally torn in a long time. In fact, I don't ever remember having to choose between my very survival and that of others before this. Doctors are asked to make choices between patients all the time, but choosing between the life of somebody else and ourselves? It was like a healer's nightmare version of the Kobayashi Meru.

I can still see the look on the chief medical officer's face as I insisted we had to leave before it was too late. I never expected I would be the one advocating such a position, and even though I know it was the necessary thing to do, a part of me still feels guilty. I can't remember how we got back, but my gratitude that we did hasn't completely left me.

Still, these events are but a footnote now as all of us do our best to move on. Most notably, the Captain is back in command after a lengthy period of evaluation and suspicion. I have no doubt she is relieved about this turn of events, but I'm under no illusion it will be a simple transition for her. After the events on Pangaea, it will be a relief to actually help people once again.

 

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