A Physical of sorts
Posted on Tue Mar 30th, 2021 @ 11:21pm by Lieutenant Commander Aaron Marcus & Ensign Hunter Mitchell
Mission:
S1, E0: We need each other.
Location: Sickbay
Timeline: MD001 1300 hrs
1316 words - 2.6 OF Standard Post Measure
Hunter grabbed his tool kit and headed out of engineering. There had been a call from sickbay that they were having an issue with some equipment. Ever since he came on board he had been fixing and tweaking things all over the ship. He wished he had arrived earlier so that he would have had a hand in getting things up and running.
At first he thought it might be a ploy to get him to come for his physical but then he saw he was on the schedule for the next day. It was his third one since he came on board. He wasn’t opposed to them, Hunter just had been too busy helping get things operational.
Aaron saw the Engineer walk in and made a grandiose gesture in his direction. "Well look what the cat dragged in. He who keeps the bolts of this rust bucket together. Took you long enough... We have three biobeds that are shorting out and one that tells me the wrong species information on the people on board. Think we can get that in order sometime this century." Aaron was more unruly then normal as the breakdowns had pushed him to his limit.
Hunter paused as to think about it for a moment. “It will be close, Lieutenant Commander,” Hunter replied with humor. “When jobs are done without the engineering crew that serves here working in them they tend to not get the tender moving care deserved.” His eyes met the doctors. “I will endeavor to be finished before the next century but keep in mind you might want to move my physical, yet again in order for me to meet your expectations.”
Aaron never understood the bulk of Starfleet Officers. They seemed so ready to put themselves into harms way for the glory of exploration. However, they were afraid of something as simple as a physical. Well, this Engineer would not be one to miss out. "There is where you are wrong my young friend. You will be the guinea pig for your own work. As you repair equipment I will test it on you and all the while your physical will be getting done. Let's start with this medical scanner shall we? Oh look according to this you are Andorian." Aaron approached the Engineer and walked with his cane as he spoke.
Hunter grinned. “If you want me to be Andorian, I can be but I am afraid I don’t like the cold weather very much. I am more of a warm beach, drinking a margarita person.” He held out his hand. “But with a tweak or two I can make myself quite human.”
Within a moment or two the scanner was back in Aaron's hands and he was rescanning the engineer. Sure enough it worked. "Excellent now I can see that you are a human. Next up how about you fix the bio bed you are sitting on. According to the vital signs that it is giving me you are actually dead. You know, I am curious why do engineers join Starfleet. I mean with your knowledge of technology etc... you can make sure that entire planets stay well fed etc... for eons." Aaron was not pro fleet and wondered why people joined willingly.
“Without engineers the Federation would fail,” Hunter said seriously. “Who would fix your equipment? Keep the engines running? Hell, there isn’t a department on this ship that could function long term without us.” He worked as he spoke. “I don’t want to serve on a planet I want to be out here being a part of the bigger picture.” He grinned at the doctor. “Want to check and see if you’re still talking to the walking dead?”
Aaron ran the scan again and sure enough the bed worked perfectly. The Ensign's bio signs showed that he was healthy as a horse. "Well that seems to be in working order now. You just hit on exactly what I was saying. Why not let all the equipment and the ships fail. Why exactly do we need them? Large waste of time and space if you ask me." He continued to examine Hunter as he spoke and then added "Are there any chrinic medical issues that we should know about?"
“No I am in excellent health,” Hunter replied and then went back to the topic at hand. “We cannot sit back and live in a bubble on our own planets. We are scientists by nature, discovery is in our blood and we are out here to protect our worlds as well. If we gave up on space, chances are you and the rest of us would be serving under an evil master. We need to keep the peaceful balance for all and discover.”
Aaron nodded sagely as he continued the physical. "I would make a healthy wager that you can tell me everything there is to know about every chip in this ship. Just as I could tell you everything there is to know about the human body and how it works. Does it not make sense that we stay on our planets as you put it and enrich ourselves by learning all we can. My point is quite simple there is no need for us to be out here."
“I disagree,” Hunter replied. “As long as there is evil in this universe, those wanting to take what isn’t there, we are necessary.” He grinned then. “And it feeds the curiosity in all of us to seek out new species and to be the first Federation crew to visit some worlds.”
"And why exactly do we need to be the police force of the galaxy? Why can't someone else do it?" Aaron said a little too abruptly. He tossed the tricorder on the cart and it clattered into the other tools there. Aaron turned to face the engineer as he leaned on his cane with a look of intensity on his face.
“It is our responsibility to keep the peace,” Hunter replied with conviction. “We are honest and have the goodwill of all in our minds. we don’t want to overtake other species or worlds but to live in harmony among them.”
"We sure do start a lot of wars for a people who want to live in harmony among the neighboring worlds." Aaron's snide remark dripped with the disdain that he felt toward Starfleet and the Federation as a whole.
Hunter wondered what the hell the doctor was doing out here if he didn’t believe in the mission but he didn’t ask he just continued on. “Sometimes we have to start them, others it appears so and then there are wars we have no choice in the matter it comes to us.”
"So I am correct it would be better to simply stay put and take care of our own, learning about ourselves as we go. Any war that comes to our door we can defend against. Going on the offense is just pointless." Aaron said as put the finishing touches on the Ensign's physical. "Well it seems you are fit for duty and saving the galaxy one nebula at a time."
Hunter shook his head. He couldn’t figure out if the doctor truly thought being out here was pointless or he liked to debate. “We can agree to disagree on that.” He grinned. “You made my physical enjoyable.” He put out his hand. “It was interesting meeting you, if you have any further issues just send a message and I will be back for round two.” He headed on his way.
Aaron watched as the other man left. He wondered what made people so naïve. Perhaps if he continued to spread the ideas that he had it would get him kicked from the ship and sent back to Starfleet Medical.
