Nice to Meet You, Too

Posted on 06 May 2017 @ 7:24pm by Lieutenant Jennin Rhula & Commander Jayla Kij
Edited on on 17 May 2017 @ 9:02pm

867 words; about a 4 minute read

Mission: The Finnean Crisis
Location: Sick Bay
Timeline: MD1

Continued from That New Car Smell

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"Impressive," Rhula exclaimed, not aware he'd vocalized it.

Jayla threw a grin to the Bajoran man, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. "My sentiments exactly," she said. "Did you see the lab, yet?

"Who are you?" Rhula asked the Trill woman bluntly. He had worked with some Trill before and found it to be an exercise in exhibiting tolerance, something he wasn't very good at. Trill had a reputation, not undeservedly so, for being arrogant.

"Doctor Jayla Kij," her grin slipping into the amused territory. "Chief Medical Officer. And you are?"

Oh great, he thought, she’s in charge.

“I am Jennin Rhula. I’ll be running the med lab,” he stated. “I’ll also be working in the Science department as an exobiologist, so you don’t get to monopolize my time.”

Jayla’s eyebrows went up and her smile faltered. “I wasn't planning on it,” she replied. “I try not to monopolize anyone, really.”

“Excellent,” he responded flatly. Rhula was not known for a pleasant demeanor. It wasn't that he was intentionally mean to people, but rather that he didn’t always see the point of being nice. “Physician, I take it? What’s your speciality?”

“Just general practice,” she replied. “I really enjoy pediatrics and Obstetrics, but I don't get to do much of that out here.”

“Show me the lab,” Jennin said, changing subjects. He’d attempted small talk but now desired to see his new facilities.

“Okay,” said Jayla, slightly amused; he seemed either disagreeable or just slightly awkward. “Right over here. It's the nicest one I've seen on a starship thus far,” she said, taking the few short steps to the door in question. The door opened and the lights flicked on at their approach. “After you,” she said, gesturing for him to enter the lab first.

Stepping past Kij, Rhula walked into the medlab. He took a quick look around. “Smaller than I thought. Especially for a ship this size,” he said aloud to no one. Then, turning around to face the Trill woman, he continued, “This will have to do, I suppose. You’re joined?”

“Yes,” replied Jayla, deciding that the guy was definitely awkward. “For eighteen years. Nearly nineteen.”

“Ah,” Jennin muttered. He returned to looking at the lab. Crossing from the doorway to the console mounted into a curved bulkhead, he took a seat on one of the stools. “Not as nice as my office on Bajor. Nor as comfortable,” he complained. “Perhaps I could requisition some better furniture.”

Standing, he walked over to the exam slab. On the ceiling above the slab was a sensor suite he could use to run scans on bodies. The readouts would show on display screens on the bulkhead above the head of the slab.

“Will you been needing me to take regular shifts see patients? You should have a large enough staff, yes?”

“Unless there's an epidemic, I think we'll be okay,” she answered still half amused at his manner. “If we come across a species with which we are unfamiliar, we may call on your expertise, though.”

“That’s promising,” he said, likely sounding slightly positive. Treating hypochondriacs and coddled Starfleeters from planets who didn’t have recent troubles like Bajor did wasn’t high on his list. It had been the worst part of his otherwise enjoyable previous assignment. Having to pull regular rotation in the clinic was enough to make any professional scientist annoyed. At least a scientist worth a damn. It remained to be seen if this Trill woman was such a scientist, or simply a do-gooder intent on trying to cure the universe of it’s medical woes.

“Given that you had to ask my name, I’m guessing you haven’t reviewed my personnel file yet. I’ll give you a brief overview of the salient points. In addition to holding a medical license and being a Federation Medical Board certified anatomical pathologist, I completed a fellowship in clinical pathology. I also hold a Ph.D in exobiology. I’ve only recently joined Starfleet, having spend most of my life working in civilian medicine on Bajor.”

“Impressive,” she replied, honestly and also echoing his previous words. “No, I haven't had a chance to review personnel files. I only arrived an hour ago and Starfleet doesn't send information to department heads early. Because that would be too logical,” she added with an exasperated shake of her head.

“I don’t need you to be impressed. I simply thought that as the Chief Medical Officer, you should be aware of my abilities.” He looked past Kij to the door. “Anything else to show me?”

Jayla’s eyebrows shot up. “Just because you don't need me to be impressed doesn't stop it from happening,” she informed him. “It was a compliment.”

The Bajoran man stared at her. “Ah,” came his dispassionate response. “If there’s nothing else, I should go see my exobiology lab.”

"Yeah, all right, go on," sighed Jayla. She could get along with almost anyone, but had a sinking suspicion that this guy was going to make things difficult.

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