=/\=Medical Shuttle Tydirium, you are cleared to dock.=/\=
=/\=Roger that Ogawa.=/\=

Drake watched as his mother’s medical shuttle drifted into the Ogawa shuttle bay and made a smooth landing. He dreaded this moment. But she was a patient, his brother, just the relative. He stepped out to get a situation report from the shuttle nurse as they brought his mother off. “Drake?” He didn’t answer. “What’s the patient’s condition?”
“Stable. Steady heart rate and BP all the way here, no signs of complications.”
“Thank you.” Nate emerged from the shuttle. “Drake. It’s been too long.”
“That’s my line. Come on, I’ll take you to sickbay.” As he swivelled, he expected to see his mother as he remembered her. But she was shrivelled with cancer. “Let’s go.”

A little while later, they arrived in secondary sickbay. “Get her to biobed 4.” The nurse nodded. Drake waited by the door for a minute.

When he went over to check on the situation, Nate was sitting on their mother’s bed. “So?” Drake checked her vitals. “Looks good for now. You’re going to have a host of doctors. Dr Antoine will be over to take some images later today, on the night shift Dr Yelchin will be keeping an eye on you. If we determine that we want to try and shrink the tumour before operating, you’ll be seeing Dr Stephens. Nate, if either of you have any questions, my office is right there. I’m usually there until at least 10pm.”
“Office?” Drake’s mother asked. “Yeah. I’m the Chief of Surgery. Get some rest. You’ve got a long course of treatment ahead of you.” She nodded and closed her eyes.

Nate followed Drake to his office. “You never said what you’d be doing.”
“I’m her surgeon. And I need to be very careful dealing with family. But I’m guessing they shipped you out here because she refuses any kind of transplant. And no doctor in their right mind would touch this thing.” Drake tapped at his computer console and spun it around. “But I noticed that the sarcoma has yet to make contact with any aorta. Which means, while still extraordinarily delicate, this might be possible.”
“You know she’s just too out of it to be outwardly proud of you for being Chief of Surgery on a ship like this. They told us that the Ogawa, that you, were reserved for emergencies. And now we get here, and you’ve got your own department.”
“Well we haven’t exactly been exchanging Christmas cards, have we Nate?”
“You’ve been so far away-“
“Don’t. Don’t you dare blame me. Again. I didn’t take this job to rebel. I wanted out of ER because it’s a constant horror fest. And the Ogawa seemed like a nice compromise.”
“Drake. We miss you.”
“Bull. You haven’t missed me since I finished med school.” Nate stared in shock. “How was I supposed to feel Drake? My prodigy older brother left me in the dust. M.D. at 20. I can’t top that, I can’t match it. So yeah, I was pissed. But because I wanted my brother back.”
“Well you’re an FSA Agent now. We’re adults. We’re equals. And as delightful as this little family therapy session has been, it was grown ass adult you who decided I didn’t belong in the family anymore. I’m just following the rules. Mr Marshall.” Drake sat and turned his monitor back around. “Your mother will be fine.”

-Dr Drake Marshall, Chief of Surgery