Guardians of the Brown Sector.

Posted on Sun 29th Mar, 2020 @ 9:18am by Auric Nepenthe & Khellian s'Siedhri MD & Makila i'Hartelhai & Alsina Telsamvi & Arik Telsamvi
Edited on on Sun 18th Aug, 2024 @ 6:51pm

1,771 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: Resolution
Location: Brown Sector
Timeline: 2 weeks prior to "Brown Sector's Sunrise"

A harsh banging brough Makila off the couch where she'd been resting- in sort of a half doze. Her reading fell to the floor with a thump as the sound came again. Bang! Bang! Bang! and this time it brought with it the desperate cry of a young boy "Healer! Please Healer, open up!" Another series of sharp bangs sounded at her door. She slid across the floor as she scrambled to get herself presentable enough to see someone. Her fingers raked through her wild curls, to try to tame them, and she kicked the book out of her way. Makila's bag was over her shoulder before she knew what she was doing and she slipped bare feet into a pair of flats before opening the door.

The boy was dirty, and a bit discheveled as if he'd been sleeping on the floor for a while. He smelled as if he hadn't showered in a week, but he was muscular and slim. A combination of not eating and hard work in his short life. His face lit with a smile, belied only by the deep lines of concern in his face. "Healer! Can you come with me? My sister needs help."

"What's going on?" Makila didn't comment on his terminology, because healer was a universal. She could and would notify her father if she needed him. Her credentials as a healer were on par with his, except that she had yet to sit her medical exams.

"The baby has been coming for days, and now she's bleeding fair bad. All she does is scream that it's killing her." the young man blanched a little bit, and Makila nodded. She touched the panel on the door and spoke briefly in Rihansu, before allowing the door to close behind her.

"Take me to her. Father will be along in a moment." Obstetrics she'd studied at length. Father was capable of delivering babies as he'd brought her into the world, but Makila actually enjoyed the process. Khellian was in the process of rousing himself from bed as the door clicked shut, having acknowledged her words with a curt 'ie'.

"Yes'm" The station lights were dim- as night mode was firmly in effect in the civilian areas and Makila enjoyed the glimmer of stars overhead. A hologram of course, but one she appreciated having spent little time on an actual planet. The little things were the most appreciated she thought as she followed the boy down a twisting maze of corridors. The path got more narrow as they proceeded, and the scent of unwashed bodies and stale air compartments became more apparent. Then she heard a shrill scream and the boy beside her shuddered. He couldn't be more than 12, and it was clear he was scared. Reaching out she squeezed his shoulder "It's going to be alright...um...you didn't tell me your name."

"Arik Telsamvi- Unafilliated. My sister is Alsina Telsamvi- also unaffiliated."

That she gleaned meant that none of the gangs owned them, and that they would not be in danger from any rival activity at this moment. Caring for her was as safe as this area of the station could offer. Surprise crossed her face when she saw a man marked with a green armband and hairband, one in red with stripes on his face and garmets, one in blue head to toe and one in silver with black accents standing with crossed arms at the threshold of a small dwelling. All of the factions guarding one laboring woman? Not just all the factions, but the leaders of the factions. There was more at stake here than just one woman.

The man in black and silver caught her arm and quietly asked "Take care of her, please. She's been taking care of all of us." The bare hand on her arm made her stagger at the force of the emotions behind the quiet words. This woman was their Guardian, their nurse, the baby was their mascot and loved by all the factions down here. Not any sense of a leader, but every single gang would lay their lives down to protect her. They couldn't protect her from this, and they were afraid. Her pain was frightening them, for all they stood to lose if she died. The screams coming from within began anew and he released her arm. Straightening up she nodded and crossed the threshold. She was going to have a headache from the transference, but Makila couldn't bring herself to be upset about that.

Her patient was in the middle of a bloodsoaked bed, writhing and muffling her screams in a pillow. Once the pain eased, and she uncurled from the pillow Makila got a good look at Alsina. Young looking, with deep circles under her green eyes and a thin face. Her hair would be dirty blonde- if it was clean, and since she was nude the familiar markings on her body were visible. Tattoos also decorated her body, somewhat tribalesque but Makila didn't know what they meant. She was curious what the symbol meant that bloomed between milk heavy breasts. Alsina was too thin, but looked like she ate better than young Arik. The swirl from her bellybutton had been painted on recently and carried with it the sharp scent of plant dye. She also recognized a Romulan luck sigil at the base of the swirl. A Klingon mark of power and strength was there as well, and she thought she saw both trill and bajoran symbols within the swirl. Interesting combination of symbology.

"Healer!" the woman panted reaching out with both hands towards the other woman. She was splattered with bright red blood, but didn't appear to be bleeding actively.

"You've had a rough time of this birth." Makila said softly as she ran her scanner over her swollen belly. She smiled at the readout of a healthy child even despite the stresses of labor. "Tell me of your time..."

"The pains started 4 days ago Healer. My waters went this morning very early and the blood came after that. I push and push...but no baby comes. He will kill me! He tears me inside, it hurts so much." The blonde's eyes closed and tears dripped down her raw cheeks. "I must be cursed!"

"You are not cursed! The babe is laying across your belly." she said, grasping Alsina's hand to show her where the head of her baby sat. "No matter how hard you push, he cannot come out this way. We might consider..."

"You can't cut me! You can't!" she cried interrupting Makila's words, grasping her arms with bloody hands. "He won't be considered a man if you cut him from me. He will be ostracized if I'm too weak to birth him! Please!"

I hate hate HATE bloody handprints, they flake and itch so much. "You will have to tell me more about that once he's born. Arik, Get me clean blankets and sheets. Get these bloody sheets out of here and destroy them, I will get you new ones. " The boy scrambled to obey and they soon had a room that didn't reek of iron. The blood was gone from the floor and the bed, and now only smeared her thighs. "Are you allowed medicines to ease your suffering?"

"If...it comes from a birthing woman, yes."

"Good." Makila loaded a hypospray and pressed it to her throat with a hiss before she could say another word. It held a muscle relaxant and a painkiller that was short acting. From her pack she drew a packet of herbs and separated them into two piles, one large and one small. "Alsina, you rest a moment and I will turn the baby in your belly. Arik, I need hot drinkable water."

"Yes'm"

Alsina sagged back into the clean bed, clearly exhausted, the respite from the pain allowing her to rest for the first time in days. She fell into a fitful sleep, and Makila smiled gently. The muscle relaxant she'd given her, allowed Makila to ease her hands over her swollen belly without causing her pain. She slipped her hand into a glove that had an ultrasonic transmitter built into the fingers, and this would allow her to easily manipulate the baby into the proper positon, without causing the mother undue pain. If they'd come in when she'd initially gone into labor- Makila could have done this immediately and the babe would have been born days ago. She could hear the ultrasonic transmission and she winced at the shrillness in her ears, but gently stroked her hand over her bare belly. Press and release. Wait for a contraction, press and release. The babe within twisted and writhed to get away from it, and the whole shape of her belly changed as the head engaged into the pelvis. Her scanner hummed again to make sure that the motion hadn't damaged the placenta or caused the baby any distress. It hadn't.

"There..." she whispered "Arik, why don't you have a birthing woman attend her?"

"We don't have one anymore. She died a few years back, and her apprentice is right useless. Alsina was trying to learn the trade as well, but then she was chosen to have a child..."

That was an interesting choice of words. "What made you come to me?"

"I saw you in the light of the Dawnstar. I knew you could help. You've been helping quietly for a long time. The factions noticed, and they are appreciative. They approved me coming to seek you out Healer, as the leaders know your face."

"We'll definitely have to speak about that some more later."

"Yes'm" Arik laughed softly and shook his head before looking at his sister. "She will be alright? She won't die in the birthing? Many women do down here without Old Agi"

Makila stopped in the mixing of the herbs into a tea and glared fiercely at Arik. "She won't die in the birthing, and If I have anything to say about it no one will die in the birth of their child here again."

There was a murmur from outside, clearly the faction leaders had heard what she'd said and were discussing it. She'd have to study the faction traditions, or have someone educate her because she speculated that she'd be assisting in quite a few births from now on. Makila's eyebrows rose at the look of amusement on Arik's face. "You're so amused Arik Telsamvi- Unafilliated. You get to teach me about the traditions here, so I don't botch anything."

"Yes'm. All honor to the healer."

 

RSS Feed

Comments (1)