The Apology Tour

Posted on Fri Jun 7th, 2019 @ 8:06pm by Commodore Wilkan Targaryen & Commander Galatea & Commander Sherwin Porter
Edited on on Thu Jan 2nd, 2020 @ 5:32pm

1,802 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: Atlantis
Location: Ready Room, Starfleet One
Timeline: 2429-12-02, 12:15

Admiral William Teagarden sat at the oak table in his Ready Room looking at the floral arrangement that was in the center. This had been the fifth arrangement he'd replicated in the last hour and he still hadn't found the right choice. At first he tried flowers, then went to fruit, a giant candle, back to flowers, then another set of flowers. Nothing suited him today. Right now he was looking at a collections of hydrangea blooms in a vase that his wife would absolutely despise. His mother, Beatrix, may have loved them, but she sure as Hell wouldn't. 

If he ever saw her again. 

The Admiral shook his head and let out a long breath. He looked at the bloom and decided that he would rather not deal with something that he knew his wife would specifically hate. This wasn't her office - she was at Starfleet Headquarters - but he would rather have something that she liked than something he knew she'd hate. Probably was he wasn't a fan of tulips as she was. 

Setting the vase and its contents in the replicator he pressed the recycle key and brought back up the menu of available choices. The table would be covered in PADDs soon enough so part of him wondered if a decoration was even needed. He relented and tried another option.

"One fruit bowl," he ordered, "assorted items."

On the grid a new bowl of fruit appeared of various types. He saw bananas, apples, and oranges amongst the plethora. It looked exactly like the last fruit bowl. Instead of bothering he placed it back on the grid and recycled it for a new option. "One fruit bowl," he repeated, "but don't make it look like the last one."

The computer complied. Another fruit bowl replaced the other. This one was a mix of apples, pears, and oranges. It was a little better, but he was about to put an end to the whole damned experiment. Walking it over to the table he heard the door chime. As he adjusted the bowl to make the appearance more vibrant he called out, "Enter."

Sherwin took a deep breath as he heard the acknowledgment of the chime. On the way to the Ready Room, the recent memory of the memorial had replayed over and over in his mind. He'd remained silent during the ceremony because it had struck a deep chord within him. All the feelings he'd experienced long ago at his late husband's funeral had flooded back today, feelings he'd long pushed down...feelings he thought he'd gotten over. He had vowed, though, to never go down that rabbit hole again, so he utilized all his training to try to pull himself out of it.


As the doors opened, Porter wondered how he'd heard the Admiral's voice to come in. The walls and door were thick and pretty much soundproof so that no one would be able to listen from outside the room. Perhaps his empathy and/or telepathy was on high alert and he hadn't even realized it, or maybe the computer was programmed to project the Admiral's voice through the door.


"Hello, Doctor," William greeted his old friend. "Thank you for coming on such short notice. I hope that I didn't pull you away from too much in sickbay. "In truth he had missed the counsel of Doctor Porter a great deal over the years. They had been through a lot together, "Did you bring the dermal regenerator I'd asked for, Doc?"


Despite everything that had happened, Sherwin couldn't help but smile. "Hi Admiral...no, it's pretty quiet it Sickbay now," he replied moving into the Ready Room. He stepped forward and handed the dermal regenerator to him. “Here you go,” he added, knowing the Admiral would inform him why it was necessary if needed. 

"Thank you," he answered as he accepted the medical tool. "How are things?"

Sherwin relaxed a bit. "I've been settling back in pretty well, although I do have to admit...with all that recently happened, it's been difficult." He paused for a moment, "I...I've missed you," he said referring to the fact that Teagarden had transferred Porter to the Enterprise and then left pretty much as he'd arrived.

The Admiral pulled off his uniform tunic as he spoke with the doctor to reveal the massive shrapnel wound on his side, "I've missed you too my friend. It was a lot harder to explain this type of thing to my last CMO." He smiled as he said it. "The shrapnel passed right through the meat. My body isn't regenerating like it used to. It hasn't been for some time now."

"Oh my gods," Sherwin said stepping over quickly. "Why didn't you tell me you were injured?!"

Without even waiting for an answer, he literally grabbed the regenerator back out of the Admiral's hands. He pointed to the small couch near the wall. "Lay down over there, on your left side," he ordered.

The Admiral thought of protesting, but knew it would be of no use. Sherwin was a great Doctor and William was far from even remotely being one. He knew which battles to fight and when to relent. Plus it hurt like Hell.

"Yes Sir," he said as he lay on the couch.

The Chief Medical Officer kneeled down next to the Admiral and began to work on the wound with the precision that comes with years of experience. He glanced up briefly, "I would tell you to take it easy since you're evidently pretty much no longer indestructible, but I know better."

"That's why we work so well together," the Admiral answered. "You know already how hardheaded and self destructive I am without me having to tell you." It wasn't a lie. Sherwin and he had served together for so long few knew him so well.

"And you know that I'll continue to patch you up no matter how much bad your injuries may be," the doctor replied as he began the regeneration process. Even with all their talk, Sherwin was a bit surprised how deep the wound was. He also knew better than to ask how it happened. His job was to heal, not to judge decisions on what caused the injury.

Leaning in a little further, the CMO had to spread the dermis apart so he could get inside the cavity. "You have two broken ribs, and you almost punctured your lung," he said out loud. He'd have much rather done this in Sickbay, but the Admiral would never have gone there for treatment because other medical personnel might have realized Teagarden's history, which was classified.

Porter pushed the device into the abdomen. "Hold still, this may sting a bit."

William winced a little. "Sorry. How's your son?"

Sherwin glanced up to make sure his patient was okay. Sensing nothing other than mild pain from the injury and the process, he answered the question. "Honestly, I don't know. Since I became a..." he hesitated momentarily speaking the actual word, "...a recluse, I haven't seen him in years." He regenerated the first rib and continued. "We've written back and forth, but I haven't had the heart to talk to him face to face."

"He's at the Academy isn't he? Or was it he was planning to attend in the fall?" The Admiral questioned trying to recall the details. He'd been receiving the applications for candidates to have their midshipman cruise aboard and he had not yet selected. "If you want, and this is your choice, I can move him to the top of the list for training aboard this vessel. Again, only if you want me to."

"Yes, he is there now," the doctor replied as he finished the second rib regeneration. He cleaned up the internal cavity and began working on the skin as he considered the offer. Being able to have his son, Tony, working and living on the Enterprise with him, that would be... incredible. But would Tony want it? Sherwin didn't know if his son, who was in the Science program, had even applied to the Enterprise for training.

"I, umm...," he flustered, "that would be great." He looked up at the Admiral's face. "But I wouldn't want to take away from someone else's position who might qualify..."

Teagarden brushed it off, "I'm not a fan of nepotism, Doctor. I was a victim of it for a long time and had to prove my worth. In this instance, due to my familiarity with your son, I feel he would be qualified. Besides, I'm certain he's a scholar." He knew Galatea was monitoring, "Send my approval."

"Authorization forwarded."

"But, be sure to spend time with him," it would come across as an order, but he hoped Sherwin would see through it. "And I feel much better already. Thank you."

"Thank you, Admiral. You can bet on it," Sherwin said formally and with a smile before slipping back into the familiarity they shared. "I'm glad you are feeling better," he said finishing the outer dermal layer, because you're all healed. At least for now," he added with a wink and a half-sigh. He knew wouldn't likely be long until his services were needed again, especially since William was unlikely to remain out of the line of fire.

He put back on the tunic, "Thanks. You know I owe you an apology. I talked you in to returning to space service then got reassigned. I'm sorry for that."

Sherwin stood up and put the regenerator back in his pocket. He pursed his lips for a moment, then then sighed. "Truthfully, I was resentful about that. I thought you left on your own accord. It didn't occur to me that even you would be subject to having someone higher ranking reassign you." He inclined his head, "it wasn't your fault, so there's nothing to be sorry for."

"Starfleet had given me broad authority to meet the needs of the fleet, that is true, but you missed the fun when they demoted me and removed me from this ship after Vlulyr Tuok. That reassignment changed me in more ways that one," he thought about reunification and the devastation it had wrought already. He grinned, "Glad to have you back. But I've kept you from Sickbay long enough. With us under Coaxial Speeds people will get nausea, vertigo, and all those other irritants that keep you busy. I'll let you get back to them, unless there was anything you wanted to talk about?"

"No, Sir," Sherwin smiled, " and thank you. I'll look forward to his arrival," he added. The doctor understood the dismissal, and he knew the Admiral also had work to do. He headed out the door and back to Sickbay, his spirits much lifted from when he first walked in.

 

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