The Abnormal Case of Cornet Jakku

Posted on Thu Aug 3rd, 2017 @ 8:09am by Lieutenant Commander Ezekiel Hill

Mission: S01E01 - At the Brink of Night
Location: Sickbay

Cornet Jakku was a wide-eyed wanderer, an observer of sorts who just wanted to experience new cultures and civilizations. However, instead of doing that by studying at an educational institute on some alien planet, he took part in an exchange program that ended up placing him aboard a starship, a Federation starship to be more precise.

The Trill knew more about the United Federation of Planets than they knew of the Trill. A couple had gone through the Academy and joined the ranks of Starfleet. Not Cornet Jakku though. He was already a student elsewhere back home and at the end of the day he still wanted to return home after his brief participation in the program was complete.

His linguistic and cultural knowledge put him at the communications seat until a more disciplined and experienced officer could take over the majority of seat time there on the Bridge. What Cornet had not expected, however, was the Captain's persistence that he undergo a physical examination.

The young Trill nervously walked through the parting doors and into the ship's Sickbay. He had yet to have much interaction with the Doctor, but things were about to get awkward and personal.

It had been a slow day in Sickbay. The highlight of Zeke's day, up to that point, was treating a crewman who had a nasty case of Targpox. Zeke felt a phantom itch ever since that welted crewman shuffled out of sickbay with his topical cream. Between minor treatments, Zeke busied himself by studying Zaranite respirator technology, in the hopes of making the inhospitable environment of Zaran II a little more tolerable.

His research was interrupted when he caught a glimpse of somebody walking into sickbay in the corner of his eye. The first feature that caught Zeke's attention was the telltale spots on either side of his head and neck.

[i]That must be the Trill.[/i] Zeke thought to himself, never seeing a Trill in person.

He had heard stories of the Trill, and how some of them hosted neural parasites that lived for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. His colleagues mentioned the symbiotic relationship in passing, but the inner workings of it remained a mystery.

Zeke walked out from his office into Sickbay to greet the young man, "Hello, I'm Dr. Hill. What can I do for you today?"

The Trill nervously walked closer to the man and lowered his voice to a softer and quieter tone than was usual for the energetic young man. "The Captain said something about a mandatory physical if I was going to be working on her starship" said the man.

He knew the man was going to go for one of his scanning devices. Those tricorders as they referred to them as. "No tricorders, please" said Cornet Jakku. "It's against my people's ways. I do not wish to be scanned by your technology" he said flatly.

Zeke raised his eyebrow at the request, only for a moment. Nodding his head, he said to the Trill, "I haven't had the chance to study Trill physiology. Tell me, are you a Host? Is that what they call it?"

Cornet was unsure how to respond to that question. Trill society was a very private matter and so far had been rarely discussed with off worlders...outsiders to the society. The young man looked at the Chief Medical Officer and then down at the shirt that was covering his torso.

The Trill looked up. He was nervous. The Trill were not members of this man's Federation of Planets though one day perhaps it would be possible. Cornet Jakku gently reached down and started to lift his shirt up over his head and discarding it. His torso was exposed and the area where a human 'belly button' would be stood out peculiarly. "I hope to have the honor of being a host one day, but I am not mature enough yet and have not expressed interest yet to my people" he explained.

"Fascinating" Zeke replied as he placed his index fingers behind Cornet's jaw. "By Human standards, your lymph nodes are abnormally large, but for a Trill, I can only guess."

He then gently grabbed Cornet's wrist, to check his pulse. Zeke furrowed his brow, "Either you're nervous or Trills have a very fast heartbeat. Do you have any sort of cardiovascular conditions?"

Cornet tensed up a bit, almost coiling when the Doctor touched him. Physical contact with another Trill was one thing, but such contact with another species was a new experience for the young alien. The humans were especially peculiar with their closeness and physicality. "No...um well No Sir. I don't have any that I am aware of. I just think I'm a bit nervous around you is all" admitted the Trill. I hope this doesn't mean that I'm Xenophobic thought Cornet. "You find me interesting, Doctor?" asked the Trill.

Zeke smirked, "I don't know you enough to find you personally interesting." Zeke walked into his office and returned with a PADD. Scribbling down notes, he said, "Medically speaking, I've never had the chance to meet a Trill, and Starfleet Medical doesn't have much information on your species. Working with you might be illuminating."

Zeke put his signature on the PADD and showed it to Cornet, "As far as I can tell, you're medically fit for duty. Honestly, I'm a little perplexed as to why the Captain would send you to me for a checkup. Half of the crew are grizzly, middle-aged war veterans."

The Trill breathed a sigh of relief. The last physician from the Federation that saw him was very inquisitive and touched his pouch. That was a rather unsettling experience. "I...uh well, I was supposed to have a physical before coming aboard, but it ended abruptly" he said. Because I ran away from him thought the young man. "The Captain wanted to make sure I was in good enough health to perform Bridge duties as needed. I know you don't really have much to compare me to" added Cornet with a shrug. "But you were much kinder to me than the last Doctor. He didn't even ask before he started poking about and touched my pouch" he said with a sigh.

Zeke nodded, some of his colleagues had terrible bedside manner when it came to aliens that they had never seen before. "Sorry to hear that. Too many Starfleet doctors let their curiosity ruin their bedside manner."

The sickbay doors opened, and an engineering crewman limped in with his right arm curled up and burned. Zeke shook his head, "Another plasma burn. I'll relay your exam information to the Captain. If you have any issues, you know where to find me."

Corner was somewhat amused and enthralled in the plasma burn. It was one of the few times he had seen an injury aboard a starship. The Chief Medical Officer was so calm about it. "Yes, Sir" replied the Trill as he backed out of Sickbay.