Posted by Civilian Kenzo B’tren-Hyrushi (Governor) in Governor’s Home - TMODJ (PRISM)

Posted by Captain Eela Dasca (Lt. Governor) in Governor’s Home - TMODJ (PRISM)

Posted by Civilian Yavia Crockett (Nurse - Sacred Heart Hospital) in Governor’s Home - TMODJ (PRISM)
Posted by… suppressed (3) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(snip)

“Hello again, Karilan,” Caridee greeted. Given they were supposed to have dinner altogether, this wasn’t quite the meeting in person they had expected. And yet, watching them interact with Eela made her emotional in a good way. All these people were here to help, yes, but they also cared and that meant a great deal.

Sharah and Yavia shared a glance and a soft smile. They knew a few medical engineers who felt the same need to meddle. Fortunately for Massat he was dealing g with Sharah and Yavia and not so.eone who would reprimand and forbid him entry for such behavior. Their pride and self assurance wasn’t that delicate. As long as Caridee, as next of kin, had no objections to Massat providing their expertise, Sharah had no objections. “We are waiting for one more nurse to arrive - Ilena Rox. Then we can get started.” She looked at Caridee, “What do you need?”

Fayth, SFCMO

There was the sound of the door opening and a gentle voice, “Cmdr Fayth?” Sharah set a hand on Yavia’s shoulder and stepped out of the room. She returned with another Betazoid woman in Fleet Medical blue and Lt pips. She was taller than Sharah and had bright auburn hair. “This is Lt Ilena Rox. She is our head surgical nurse, but more importantly she has experience working with super-sensitives on Betazed. Her experience will be valuable.” Ilena looked around at each face and gave a gentle smile. “I’ll do whatever I can.” She walked over to Eela and sat on the bed and set a hand against her arm and looked at her intently trying to see what she could sense from the sleeping woman.

Her sleep was dreamless, and aside from the breaths she took and the tangible pulse, Eela gave off no discernible emotions at all. Even that spark that made her her was missing.

Sevren inhaled deeply and moved to her bags unpacking their contents, speaking softly. “Okay, so I just need to make sure I have everything set up to ground her, which will be vital in terms of forging a deeper connection. I’m hoping the familiarity from the sua soams ritual will help her be less resistance to the process.” In one bag were an assortment of small vials of liquids, two piece of thick black cloth that seemed fairly heavy. In the other, she pulled out a large crystal prism that with all surfaces smoothed and polished. It was attached to a silver metal octagonal base and the entire thing was about 40 centimeters tall.

“Once everyone is here, I’ll explain what exactly we’re going to do and cover risks and contingencies.” Caridee looked over at the deeply sleeping form on the bed and tried to keep her inner calm. There were reasons you didn’t treat family members, but sometimes there was no other choice. She was the only other one that understood the canar and why it was important and useful to this process.

~Caridee

Hyrushi thought for a moment and then said “You should know, before we begin, that some of us assisting have abilities of a strength and nature you may not be familiar with. We are well-versed in their usage and have control… but you will need to factor that into your treatment of Captain Dasca. Additionally, I expect everyone assisting to maintain the strictest confidence of what transpires in this room. Outside of us and any medical professionals required for any recovery; what happens here stays here.” and he took a steadying breath. “I will not tolerate any public perception of weakness towards the Captain as a result of what has transpired.”

Hyrushi, Governor

Before anyone else could say anything, Yavia smiled compassionately at the governor with understanding. “Eela is important to all of us, Sir. We would never compromise her, and our oaths prevent us from speaking of it. You have our word her privacy will be kept.”

Yavia, SHNSP

“And what we can each do may not be compatible with the canar or may impact our gifts in unexpected ways. We must take great care that no one is harmed in the process. The impact on Eela being connected with someone and they became injured would be catastrophic,” Sharah added. She looked at Sevren, “I believe that is everyone.”

Fayth, SFCMO

Caridee nodded to both Hyrushi and Fayth before watching Karilan for a moment.

Karilan finished tweaking the equipment and then knelt by the bed again, holding Eela’s hand softly so as not to wake her. They stared at her for a long moment before taking a breath. “You will be okay, Eela…” they whispered.

Karilan Massat

“Okay,” she said. “For those that don’t know me, I’m Caridee Sevren, Dr. Sevren back home, but more important today I’m Eela’s daughter. I’m a psychiatrist who has worked in emergency psychiatric care for many years, and importantly for us today I spent one year of my residency on Halii, studying the very holistic and hands-on approach to health that my mother’s people excel at. Before we get into exactly what we’re about to do, I just want to thank you for being here for her. I’m half-Haliian. While I’m an okay empath, my touch-telepathy skills are… small. So I myself am relying on my bond with my mother. But I honestly don’t know if that would be enough. Healer Legald has suggested multiple sources of input because Hallians are fundamentally a connection based people. It’s a part of our biology, psychology and culture. No Hallian revolves around just one person and this is much the same for people all over the galaxy, but Hallians do take it to extremes. Your presence here means you know my mother in some way and that some part of her would welcome reconnection with you. Realistically, I’m not sure I can do this on my own, that it will be enough, so know how grateful I am for any help. I know she will be too.” Though she was keeping her emotions mostly under wraps, Caridee radiated deep gratitude and relief.

Caridee took a deep breath and moved over to the crystal device, setting it on the end of the bed. “This is a canar. It’s basically a large crystal that is mounted to a power source and it amplifies Haliian telepathic abilities. Empathic abilities are amplified as well, but the triggering mechanism is touch. There are chemo receptors in a Haliian’s skin that trigger the higher psilosynine production the paracortex requires to be telepathic, and these crystals are unique as our biology vibrates in response to them. We become attuned to them. So each canar becomes a reflection of the person who owns it.

“Normally, each person places their hand on the base and if only one is psi-positive, then they are the ones that have their abilities amplified, so taht even someone who isn’t psi-positive can experience the other person’s abilities through them. If both are psi-positive, then their abilities meld. Higher oxytocin production creates a bond. You should understand that the canar is a tool. While it is most commonly used in romantic contexts, it is not required or necessary, and it is used in therapeutic contexts for a variety of reasons. It is intimate though, and if that makes you uncomfortable, you should not participate and we will all understand. If you are resistant to the process in any way, you will only reinforce her own resistance and exacerbate the issue.

“Now for the procedure. You should all understand that there is no standard treatment for Kuskaaritz Syndrome. It’s highly variable in presentation and occurs in roughly one percent of the population. Of that very small group, ninety-five percent are usually due to traumatic brain injuries that cause direct damage to the paracortex. Often if they fix that damage, they can reverse the disruption to the mind-body connection. The rest are the very isolated cases of a psychic attack. This situation is one I’ve not heard of and I even quickly went through my case studies looking for references to being bonded to someone when they died and I didn’t find any. That doesn’t mean it hasn’t happened, but it means that the person wasn’t admitted into a clinical setting since they’ve been tracking these cases. This treatment for her is guess work. It’s educated guess work, but guess work nonetheless. However, knowing that she had used the canar makes all of this make sense, and that’s why I’m convinced it needs to be a part of the solution. She’s experienced a deep trauma to her mind and body that her psyche can’t reconcile and even if she’s not aware of it, she’s connected the canar to that trauma. I know because she’s resistant to the idea. It scares her. So what we’re going to do is attempt to heal some of that trauma by flooding her with emotions, sensations, memories. It doesn’t have to all be positive either. Worry and concern are important emotions because they come from a place of care and she should absolutely be made aware of that. But obviously we have to be careful that we’re not adding to the trauma that experiencing someone’s death truly is.

“Now, before I cover risks and exactly how we’re going to reach her, I’ve tossed a lot at you, so… questions?” Caridee said.

~Caridee

The Governor spoke up first. “Perhaps we could answer any questions you have for us first? That may also clarify what we can expect somewhat.”

Hyrushi, Governor

Caridee was still for a moment and then looked out the windows at the serene view that would be a comfort (as well as a surprise) when her mother woke up. Turning back to them, she rubbed her palms together, her worry and unease subtle but detectable. “We have an ethical dilemma we need to consider and ideally decide how we’re going to handle before she wakes up. And I guess depending on how you all feel about it, that might change your willingness to participate.”

She gazed at her mother and it was so hard not to remember her lying in that bed for weeks on end at Starfleet Medical. She had given herself a chance to deal with some of those triggered memories and emotions when she had spent some time with Kian and Alais, but she knew it was all still there, just less… pressing. “I mentioned that she is resistant to using the canar. And just like I’m going to explain everything in detail and outline the risks so you can give informed consent to participate, I will do so for her too and I do believe that I can explain it in way that will make it less problematic for her. But she still might refuse.” Dr. Sevren looked at the people gathered. “The reality is that I’ve been a part of competency hearings and I know that sometimes we as medical professionals have to make tough choices. While I would have to check that it is still valid, I do believe that I still have medical power of attorney for her. So legally, if we have no other option, I can go ahead with this method of treatment. But it becomes a question of if we should.”

Caridee shook her head and leaned her back against the dresser. “The thing is is that Kuskaaritz creates a severe impairment in an individual. No ethics committee or judge would factor in the physical, psychological and cultural variables and deem a person with Kuskaaritz able to make decisions about their own well being. Because they can’t care. Not about their present, and not about their future. Which for those that can’t be treated the condition is usually fatal, either for physical or psychological reasons.” She stood up a bit taller. “Eela Dasca is a stubborn woman and that is one of her strengths. It makes her resilient, even if it complicates things sometimes. But I’ve seen her come close to giving up and I’m asking you to help me not let that happen again. Because I know her, and I can see the possible outcome well in advance. If we can do something now to stop it, then I feel we should do it. I’d rather her be angry at me afterwards, and actually feel something about it, then to feel nothing about anything or anyone ever again and then subsequently deem her life pointless because of it. So… I guess my question is, does anyone object to treating this condition even if the patient is uncomfortable with the method? And for the record, if you can give me a better option, I’ll take it! But I fear she will avoid using the canar ever again because it doesn’t feel safe. I think we can repair that and make it feel safe for her again. It’s too integral to her spiritual being to excise it. It would be devastating on a number of levels.” And that was considering that another treatment option could actually reverse the condition.

~Dr. Caridee Sevren, Conflicted Daughter