Log:Resistance: Gifts in the Med Bay

Resistance: Gifts in the Med Bay

OOC Date: September 15, 2019 (Optional)
Location: Yelsik's Valor
Participants: Percy, Tallie Lintra

The door whisks open without preamble to admit Captain Lintra. A flush is back in her cheeks, her black ops suit is impeccable and her blonde hair gleams neatly pulled back in a sensible bun. She comes bearing gifts, several gifts, a bottle of the hair of the dog that bit her so badly the other night, a metal tin of something promising and wonders of wonders, a tray with cook's best cakes cut into squares on it.

“Hello, Doctor Percy," she holds up her full hands asking permission to enter.

Being one of the sole medical professionals on a military vessel such as this has seemingly done little to alter the mood that Percy carries himself with. It's a busy lifestyle, to be truthful. Yet despite the many wounds and injuries he has seen and the fact that he is travelling through space, the pale, sometimes-sickly looking human has managed to preserver without complaint. It was a change, that's for sure. But that was something he was looking for.

Perhaps it's because of those reasons that when Tallie walks through his door, he nods his head in greeting. Currently seated upon his chair and lording over a desk, Percival scribbles down some notes on a datapad. The piles of documentation that surround him suggest he's likely researching /something/. A top-of-the-line medical breakthrough, perhaps?! "Captain Lintra. Come on in."

As he welcomes the Captain in, Percy stands to make his way over to a whiteboard. Upon it are already a stack of various sciences-looking equations, all scribbled without much rhyme or reason. To those who may recognize it? It's chemistry. Along with some theoretical physics.

Wallace, Percival's cat, sleeps on the edge of his aforementioned table.

"What can I do for you today? I sincerely hope your visit is not once again related to your blood-alcohol reading." All said quite casually. He hasn't even turned to look at her yet!

The smile tugging at one corner of Tallie's mouth as she takes in the good doctor's cat, equations and demeanor only confirm what she knows: the Resistance is home to the quirky, the unusual and the protector of the weird. It seems to be their mission statement of late. The smile broadens as she deposits her offerings on a relatively clear table. It would seem she belongs.

"Cross my heart, Doctor. I had a shot earlier with the Major but it was not a bender. I never thought I could face a drink again. I am a lightweight. I was just being nice to him." She does not enlarge on what she most likely should.

"I want to thank the staff for taking such good care of me the other night and after my leg injury. You said I needed a follow up so I thought I would knock out two TIEs with one missile."

"Hmm?" Percy does turn his attention away from his work at this point, eyeing the offerings that are placed on one of the free tables. "I'm not sure if you did the research and digging to know that I have an uncontrollable sweet tooth or if this is just a coincidence, but I do love cake. After being on Tatooine for such a long period of time I had almost forgotten what variety tastes like." His blue eyes squint from beneath his full-moon shaped frameless glasses. "And... what else have you brought?”

Tallie's follow-up is something that was on the front of his mind, so much so that contacting her about it was something on his list of stuff to do today. "Well, can't argue with the logic. Why don't you shake that ops suit off and take a lie-down on the bed over there, Captain? I'll be with you in a moment." Turning to face the whiteboard once more, the Doctor goes about finishing whatever thought he had before Tallie began her visit. A few squiggles are made. Some adjustments. Not a lot though.

"How has it been healing? You've been treating it as instructed? No new pain or anything like that?"

Modesty among flight crews living in co-ed bunk rooms is quickly out the airlock. The young pilot skins out of her flight suit and gets up on the table in her military issue underwear and sports bra. She has the pallor that only long term stay in space gives without a lot of time spent under sun lamps for compensation. Her thigh and leg both have thin spirals, shallow as white tattoos - one on the upper leg the other from the ankle upwards.

"They itch terribly. Every once in a while I will get a sharp pain that..." She gives him a lop-sided frown and shrug. "But that's it. Pretty good, I'd say."

Once Tallie is on the bed, Percy ambles his way over to her. The comment about the itching earns a wry smile as he sits down upon a metal stool. "That's normal. Itching can be from healing or even your skin reacting to the glue in the patch applied. But as part of this follow-up we'll change that just to keep things fresh."

What follows is a reasonably thorough check of the injuries Tallie sustained. He enters into a hard focus, not unlike the one that she perhaps goes through when dogfighting against the enemy in space. The occasional 'hmm' and thoughtful sound is made, but nothing more discernible than that. "This fracture is really interesting." He intones in a curious tone, chewing on the inside of his lip. "In all my years of practice I have never encountered an adult suffer one like this before. I've heard of it happening, sure. But these types of fractures typically happen in developing bodies. Infants, children. That sort of thing."

Removing the patch that covers the wound will likely sweep Tallie with a sense of relief. That skin underneath is finally allowed to breathe! The skin around the puncture wounds are pushed and prodded from the Doctor, ensuring that no infection or anything nasty has developed. "...this all looks fine, Captain. You're well on your way back to fighting health. I feel it's appropriate to say 'well done' on not taking off these patches and scratching at your wound. Lots of adults ignore my advice and tend to do it. It can really set their recovery back.”

Standing up from his stool, Percy wanders over to the side to prep some new patches. "Are the tattoos from a life from long ago?" Coming back to her side, he starts to apply the new dressing.

"Old scars, I got busted up in another mission. It ruins my tan," the ace pilot quips when she is released from under his scrutiny. "It..." She waves vaguely. "When the Raddus got blown I was in my A-Wing and got blown out the side of the cracked open hangar."

First one leg, then the other goes into the flight suit as she explains. "The freighter that picked me up didn't have a bacta tank so they dealt with it the old fashioned way." Seated on the table, she busies herself slipping her socks on, then fits herself back into her boots. "They were good to me. They could have just pushed me out the airlock and sold the A-Wing for some good money for scrap. But they didn't and here I am."

"Your tan, huh?" Percy replies with a smirk. "You do appear to have what I would call a 'space-chic' tan. Maybe during your next period of time off you should go some place warm. Vitamin D is very important, you know. I hope you're taking some sort of supplement for it if you're not seeing it much during your operations." Tut tut.

Listening to the story as he applies the new dressing, Percy creases his brow in some concern. Once done, he will take a step back to look at her with curious intent as she dresses herself back up. "That's quite a story. At the very least you have one thing in common with the rest of Black Squadron: you get blown up. And live to tell the tale. Sounds like you got lucky with some good people finding you." The Doctor nods at that, unfolding his arms and heading back over to his table to take a seat. "The galaxy could use more of that." He mutters, scribbling down some notes.

"Alright Captain. I do believe that we are done. Leave the patches on for another few days just to be safe. It will itch, but I promise you the longer you can leave it on the better it will heal up. After a few days you should be able to take them off and be good to go. Any questions? Concerns? No other matters you think I need to know about?"

"Yes," no longer having something to occupy her hands, the young captain looks awkwardly about her only glancing at him now and again, her eyes sliding away. "It...I may have to have a psych evaluation because of my behavior the other night. But, I talked to the Major and things seem better now. I...what do you think?"

"A psych eval?" Percy's surprised tone is clear, enhanced perhaps by him turning around to look at Tallie with a gaze. "I'm not a qualified psychologist, Captain. While I have some passing experience in it, I can offer you an evaluation based on that. But nothing too official." Finishing up with his notes, the Doctor spins in his chair and leans back into it, folding a leg across the other and arms across his chest. "To be clear, you're referring to the evening where you became so intoxicated that it was deemed necessary for you to come here?" Unlike Tallie's drifting gaze, Percy is looking right at the Captain. "Truthfully I don't know much about it. Other than that you ended up here. Were you drinking on your own? Or with others?"

After a long inhale through her nose, Lintra opens her eyes that she had squeezed shut and nods. She returns his gaze, steeled for talking about the unspeakable if it will get her back on duty. "One drink with friends then I went down to cargo with a bottle and a vid projector and had my own party. I never drink alone. It's not a good habit, I know that. I'm not Ektor." She opens her hands wide grasping for the words and shuts them tightly trying to wring them from herself.

"I will tell you what I think it is...it's not just one thing. Right?"

"Not typically, no." Percy seems hesitant to say that, his level mouth creased tightly as he waves a hand. "Please. Tell me what you think it is. We can start from there." The Doctor doesn't do more than that. He just sort of sits there, relaxed in his chair. His arms do unfold, resetting so that his hands rest neatly in his lap.

"Grief. Just plain grief. Too many dead," she says in a quiet voice then looks away, her mouth tight. "Too many of Blue gone in one attack and me alive and wondering why. Too many gone since I came back to the Fleet. The Gial Ackbar, the Raddus....too many memorial services. I'm sorry. I'm not the only one. I know that. It's seemed so selfish of me to talk about -my- grief. See?" She comes back to herself to attempt a smile and shrug.

"Goddess of mercy, it's not just that."

Percy nods slowly at what Tallie reveals. "Let's just focus on one thing at a time, shall we? What you've already said? There's a lot to unpack there. We would need some time to cover everything, but I will say this: grief. Stress. Anxiety. And what you just explained happens in a majority of clinically sane people all over the galaxy. It's called survivor's guilt. The feeling of 'why me'. Or 'I am not worthy'. Or maybe even 'what could I have done to prevent this'?" The Doctor changes switches the legs that are crossed in a thoughtful moment.

"Focussing on this guilt can be a subtle, or sometimes even subconscious effort way to avoid sadness. You come across to me as a very intelligent young woman, Captain. Doubtless you're aware of what avoiding such sadness can inadvertently cause. In the end it stands in the way of being able to move on from the grief that you feel." Percival leans forward at that.

"Experiencing these intense emotions isn't unsafe. Or bad. How you experience this and work your way through it is completely up to you. Some people are the scream out loud type. Others journal their thoughts. Others want to be left alone for a few days. Some go get really drunk. Even if it's out of character." A small smile comes across his face at that. "See the point I'm trying to make? Any is okay. Whether quiet or loud, sadness and pain are not felt in one singular way."

Letting out a breath, the pale-skinned Doctor leans back. "Does that all make sense?"

Swallowing hard she nods. "Seems like drinking doesn't suit me except as a cry for help. Lame. Very lame. But Ektor looked so...happy about things the other night after we came limping back. I thought why not. Well, I know why not, truly." She exhales very slowly marshaling her thoughts.

"Survivor's guilt. It fits. It fits, too well. I went through months of not sleeping well, dreaming of that moment of waking up back in the cockpit and realizing that I was going to run out of air, systems down and not sure where the Raddus was. Sleep deprivation is terrible when you are trying to lead and fly. Then it has been mission after mission. Oh. Motor mouth."

She runs her fingers through her neat hair, massaging her temples as she tries to put the pieces together. "I cried on the Major today. I cried until I thought I would burst. Goddess, he just took it like he does every thing. He was great," she temples her hands, unaware of how forlorn she looks talking about Poe's fortitude in the face of her falling apart on him.

"Of course he did." Percy says with a grin, seemingly without doubt that he would do anything else! "Poe has been or is maybe even going through what you are right now. He's no stranger to this. He understands. I would wager that because of his experience, he has developed his own coping methods to get through."

Tapping his chin with his index, finger the Doctor considers his next words carefully. "Sleep deprivation is one of the main enemies that we face out here, Captain. While you guys are worried about the First Order, one of my main concerns is whether or not you guys are self-caring enough. While that includes a healthy diet and exercise, it also means sleep and rest. I cannot stress that enough. Your mental health is the main foundation for everything you do in life. And sleep? That is utterly critical to help maintain it. If you're having trouble sleeping, I can come up with some techniques that can help you relax." That's the first offer extended, done so as Percy pushes his glasses back up the bridge of his nose.

"While I'm not a trained psych, I do have some friends in that field. I can either refer you on, or maybe even get some methods that will help you accept and allow the feelings you're experiencing. You're not the only one who has gone through this. In our case that's great news, because it means there are a mountain of techniques to help you out." He lets that sit in the air for a moment, before tilting his head a bit in curiosity. "Is that something you wanted me to do?"

The captain nods mutely, eyes closed against the tears that have begun too well. "This last time." She gestures vaguely towards the zenith, "This last time, I just couldn't. Anymore. I mean. When I thought my T-85 wasn't going to make it back to the Valor." She opens her eyes, fixes him with an intent look that wanders away, "I can't be this tired. So, yes. It's time I do something for myself because I can't let the squadron suffer because I am...like this."

"Alright." Percy stands from his position at that, letting some silence fall over the medical room as he does. As he shifts over to a different table, he picks up a datapad and flicks through some data.

"You know," The Doctor starts, "When I first saw your file I was surprised. A Captain? At your age?" With a shake of his head in disbelief, he sighs. "I thought that Poe was perhaps trying to fast-track the recruits here at Black Squadron. Safe to say, I was wrong about that. I owe both him and yourself an apology. You are quite deserving of your title and status. What you just said is something that even the greatest leaders have trouble doing. Swallowing your pride and putting others first? That's what leadership is all about."

"This guy right here..." Percy mutters, fingering at some data. "I think he will be just fine. Did you want to come by tomorrow morning? I should have some more for you then. In the mean-time, I would just suggest trying to relax as much as possible. Go read a book. Or hell, take some cake. I just got gifted some." The Doc gestures to said sweetness that Wallace is eyeing from afar. Surely he cannot eat all of that. X_X Tallissan sways a bit when she gets down from the table. Relief, the fatigue that comes from facing the worst fears that one has and finding them to be chimeras that fade under the lances of the people who fight by her side.

"I am on light duty till we are back on Beacon. I will. I intend to. I don't want to remain this way. Thank you, Doctor. Enjoy the sweets. The tin is full of Corellian shortbread. I have another. I want you and the team here to enjoy it with my thanks." She starts towards the door and pulls out her data pad. "Tomorrow then."