Posted by Lieutenant Séan Iven (Counselor) in side sim: Rescue Aftermath

Posted by Civilian Thyr Th’arialat (Resident) in side sim: Rescue Aftermath

Posted by Lieutenant Séan Iven (Counselor) in side sim: Rescue Aftermath
Posted by… suppressed (95) by the Post Ghost! 👻
The house was cleaned up, evidence of his being there destroyed and the criminals gone. All of it was gone. Thyr returned to the shop, unlocked the side door, and slipped inside.

He went into the bathroom, removing the packing from his wound. It would only cause infection if he left it there and didn’t get it tended to. Then he wrapped it with bandaging he had in the cabinet. Once he was done, he started to wash himself up.

It wasn’t easy. Once he’d done his arms, he sat on the floor, leaned against the wall with his uninjured side, taking a rest. He’d be fine, he told himself, just needed time.

~ Thyr

In the convenience of how the universe works Séan arrived just after Thyr had likely finished with his shower. Séan had taken the opportunity to change into clean clothes that weren’t soaked in Mika’s blood and he’d likewise taken a shower. He knocked on the loft’s side entrance as they did just get done with a very questionable activity and he wanted to be discreet.

Counselor Iven

Thinking it was Jezem, Thyr cursed quietly and pulled himself up, putting on a pair of shorts and a regular shirt. Then he put on his best normal face and opened the door. He relaxed seeing who it was. “Counselor Iven. I thought you’d be glued to your little girlfriend’s side.”

~ Thyr

“She finished having surgery and is sleeping.” Séan said as he entered the apartment. “It has understandably been a very draining time for her, so I imagine she’s going to be out for a bit. I wanted to check in on you.”

Counselor Iven

“She needed surgery?” Shivan asked and then shrugged. “Nevermind. Don’t you have a security thing to file or something?” He had once attended Academy for Security. He closed the door behind Séan and led him further in.

~ Thyr

Séan nodded as Thyr shut the door but then shook his head. “I updated them on her being found and in the hospital but told them she was unavailable to be interview per the Doctor’s orders. I did not divulge anything further though I expect to be debriefed at some point. Anyway that’s not why I’m here. I have some time while she sleeps and it would be poor of me to not check in on my partner in crime.”

Counselor Iven

Shivan intentionally stretched - it hurt, but the point was to show that he was fine. “Everything’s been cleaned up, so there’s nothing for your Security team to find, at least nothing implicating you or me. Nothing for you to worry about.”

~ Thyr

Séan shook his head. “You know that’s not what I mean about checking in on you. That knife went deep into your side and if history has shown me anything it’s that you won’t go get it looked at. So I’ve come to see how you’re doing.”

Counselor Iven

Thyr gave him a guarded, dangerous look, almost like a wounded animal. He held it for a few tense moments. Then he relaxed and sighed. “It’s.. it’s fine.”

~ Thyr

Séan was initially surprised by the look Thyr gave him but then he realized how likely it was that Thyr would be guarded against practically anybody when he was vulnerable, whether it was physically or otherwise. This wasn’t the first time he’d seen him injured though but likely the most severe. Could it be that Thyr’s response was because it was particularly bad but then he was trying to cover it up? Of course he was. Séan sighed. “How bad is it?”

Counselor Iven

Thyr gave him another calculating look. “I’ll live.” He considered sitting down, but no, he was too on edge. He felt too vulnerable as it was. If Séan paid attention though, he’d see how Thyr was moving carefully, trying to avoid causing himself pain. That his breaths were slightly labored despite his attempts to hide it. He was somewhat pale, a lighter blue than he normally was. But he was tense, ready to jump as if Séan might take the opportunity to attack him or something.

~ Thyr

Séan sighed again as his various keen observations pointed to the injury being particularly bad and definitely painful. He held his hands up in a non-threatening manner as he moved over to a chair and was the first to sit. “Do you have anything for potential infections if one sets in?”

Counselor Iven

Thyr slowly took a seat after Séan, using his hands and arms to make the descent easier on his body muscles. “Just a standard first aid kit.” He glanced at Séan and then the floor and then sighed a deep sign. “Jezem’ll kill me himself if he sees me like this.”

~ Thyr

Séan sighed again. “I could potentially keep Jezem occupied for a few days with a relationship building exercise between him and Argam, but your best options are either to come clean with him right away and get ahead of any sort of possibility it gets worse while hiding it, or get a doctor to see to your injury then use a dermal regenerator to erase the wound at least on the surface.”

Counselor Iven

“No, if you do that, Jezem may not trust you again.” He sighed and thought a moment. “If I go to Jezem, he’ll make me go to a doctor anyway. Which I don’t want to do.”

~ Thyr

“At this point isn’t it less about what you want and more about which of the two paths you have available that are less risky?” Séan asked with sympathy in his voice. He’d seen a fraction of Jezem’s intensity and was unwilling to risk bearing the brunt of it for no worthy reason. Thyr was a worthy reason to do so but the man himself clearly didn’t want to risk Jezem’s wrath. So the path of least resistance here would be to proactively see a doctor then let Jezem know about their activities.

Counselor Iven

Oh, it wasn’t Jezem’s wrath Shivan was afraid of for himself, he’d endured that many times. It was Jezem’s tentative trust of Séan he was protecting. He wouldn’t be the reason Jezem couldn’t get… ugh, ‘help’, if that’s what that weirdo really wanted. “Hm…” Shivan looked at Séan, another of those calculating, judging looks. Almost like a feral cat deciding whether or not to take food out of one’s hand. “You look. Tell me how bad you think it is.”

~ Thyr

Séan nodded slowly then rose from the chair and moved closer to Thyr. He squatted in front of Thyr and gesture for him to lift his shirt.

Counselor Iven

Thyr eyed him as he did, then carefully lifted his shirt, electing to pull it off rather than hold it awkwardly up. Then turned slightly, the wound was on his left side but near the back. The bandaging he’d used was saturated with blue blood. It had started to bleed through. Taking off the bandaging, it was a deep wound, still bleeding and not closing up well on its own.

~ Thyr

Séan examined the wound and did not like what he saw. “Where’s that first aid kit you said you had?”

Counselor Iven

“Under the sink in the bathroom.” He replied, pointing towards the room. With the bandaging off, blood began oozing down his back. His breaths seemed pained. “It doesn’t have anything too fancy, so don’t get your hopes up.”

~ Thyr

“Anything is better than nothing at this point. Any towels you don’t mind getting rid of after this?” Séan said as he got up and went to the bathroom to get the first aid kit.

Counselor Iven

“Any of them, Jezem will buy new ones,” Thyr said. “What are you going to do, bandage it with a towel?” He watched Séan walk off, unwilling to let him be out of view.

~ Thyr

“Unless you want him to buy you a new chair I’m going to cover it with some towels.” Séan said as he grabbed the kit, a couple of towels, and exited the bathroom. He set the towels and kit down, opened the kit, put on a pair of gloves, grabbed the towels, and went to stand in front of Thyr. He held a hand out. “I’ll pull you up to get the towels under you then I’ll ease you back down.”

Counselor Iven

There was a moment of hesitation and then Thyr took his hand. “Alright. Go ahead and pull, I’m ready.”

~ Thyr

Being a large muscular man, Séan had no problem gently pulling Thyr to his feet. Still holding on to his hand to keep them both balanced, he draped the towels on the chair then eased Thyr back down onto it.

Counselor Iven

Thyr helped, standing as he was pulled, then using his leg muscles to help sit himself back down. He sat so Séan would be able to see and reach what he was working on, and it was over the towels. “Tell me if there’s a way I could sit or lay to make this easier.”

~ Thyr

Séan settled in next to Thyr with the first aid kit at hand. “This is going to hurt. I can either talk you through what I’m doing or we can discuss anything else as a way to distract you.” He retrieved some cloth and a squeeze bottle of saline out of the kit.

Counselor Iven

Séan was only partway behind him, as the wound wasn’t quite on his back, so he only had to turn his head to look at him. “I find it easier if you don’t tell me, so let’s talk about something else I guess.”

~ Thyr

“Alright. So how did the cleanup go? I’m not exactly asking for particulars so I can maintain some deniability, but just kind of a generalization.” Séan said as he began to irrigate the wound with the saline solution.

Counselor Iven

“Like I said when you got here,” he said, voice tight with pain. Then he grunted and clenched his fists into the cushion of the chair. “Everything is cleaned up and nothing will trace back to either of us.”

~ Thyr

“Good, good.” Séan said as he focused on the irrigation. “I hope it wasn’t a giant pain in the rear for you. I would’ve stayed behind to help but my lady friend really needed medical attention.” He finished the irrigation and lightly dabbed around the wound as the saline made its way out.

Counselor Iven

This was a ‘giant pain’, he thought, but said nothing. Séan could tell it was bad - if it weren’t, Shivan would whine like a child with a scraped knee. Instead, he was dead silent unless he couldn’t help himself. “She did. All that blood, I’m a little surprised she’s not permanently damaged… She’s not, is she?”

~ Thyr

“Permanently… I’m honestly not sure yet. Physically she’s going to recover beautifully as the doctors did a bang up job. However her mental state is another matter altogether.” Séan said as he finished blotting the wound and getting what saline came out mopped up. “It doesn’t look like any arteries were nicked or you would already be dead. The majority of the bleeding staunched when I packed the wound but there’s still some. Hmm…”

Counselor Iven

“You’re the counselor. You’d know more about that than I would.” Shivan. Said with a shrug. He glanced back at Séan. “Hmm what?”

~ Thyr

“The wound should be fine as long as it’s cleaned daily and watched for infection. I’ll see what I can do to get you some antibiotics just in case. Have you had a tetanus shot recently?” Séan asked as he got out a new bandage and covered the wound.

Counselor Iven

“No. What’s tetanus?” The germ existed on Andoria, but it wasn’t common, partly because of the cold. And since it wasn’t from there, not everyone knew what it was. “Uh… thanks, by the way.”

~ Thyr

“A bacteria that germinates on typically rusty metal. I don’t know how well maintained that knife that went into you was but I’ll get you an inoculation for that too.” Séan said as he finished with the wound care. “Okay, this should be good for the next day or so but be sure to keep the bandaging clean and watch for any red striations in your skin coming from the wound.”

Counselor Iven

“I will. Can you sneak me anything for pain?” He figured it was a long shot, but worth asking. Séan’s bleeding heart wouldn’t want him to suffer, he was sure.

~ Thyr

Séan had a thoughtful look as he considered the request. “I don’t see why not. There’s plenty of pain relief options that aren’t narcotics. I’ll see what I can do.” He started to clean up the mess and pack up the first aid kit. “Oh that reminds me, is there anything left from that house I can pass on to Starfleet security so that they can try and track whoever supplied that crew with the drugs and such?”

Counselor Iven

Shivan could live with that. He didn’t care that it wasn’t narcotic so long as it worked. “I got rid of everything, sorry.” He shrugged as he rolled his muscles and stretched. It hurt, and he couldn’t do that much. “My guess is Starfleet would never find the supplier anyway, but they won’t find any of it or the crew.”

~ Thyr

“I suppose I’ll just tell them the truth or most of it anyway.” Séan said with a shrug of his own. He bagged up the bloody cloths, grabbed the first aid kit, and took it all into the bathroom. “How do you want to dispose of the bloodied stuff?” He called out to Thyr.

Counselor Iven

“Burn them. I’ll do it.” Thyr replied. He watched Séan for a second, and then laid over gingerly on the sofa with a very soft groan. “Leave them in the bathroom for now, I’ll do it later.”

~ Thyr

Séan did as directed and placed everything in the bathroom. He came back and sat in the chair he had first taken upon arriving. “How are you feeling? Besides the recently prodded knife wound.”

Counselor Iven

“Stabbed. Tired. Fine.” He looked up at Séan with another of those judging, careful looks. Then he sighed, “I won’t be up and around for a few days, at least.”

~ Thyr

“I’ll see what I can to get you those pain meds and antibiotics quickly.” Séan said with sympathy. “You going to need any help over the next few days? Bring you some food, clean your wound, sponge bath maybe?”

Counselor Iven

“If you want to see me naked so badly, just ask.” Thyr replied, voice dripping with sarcasm. “I’m sure no one could pry you away from your girlfriend for the next few weeks, so go let her cry all over you.”

~ Thyr

Séan grinned at Thyr’s retort. There’s the snark he was expecting. Much better than the self-pitying spirals he’d been exhibiting lately. “I can’t be with Lieutenant Mika every minute of the day. I’ll still need to work and any time in between I’ll come check on you. You did me a great favor with this and it’s the only reasonable thing I could do in return.”

Counselor Iven

Shivan shrugged and tiredly waved a hand. “I’m not big on showy thanks, so save it.” He shrugged, “I’ll be fine. I manage on my own.”

~ Thyr

“No, I insist on helping out. If not for you I wouldn’t have been able to save her.” Séan said with a determined expression. If Thyr was any good at reading people then he would know there was no dissuading Séan on this. He’d make a damn pest of himself if he had to. “I couldn’t have pulled this off on my own but believe me I still would have tried.”

Counselor Iven

“Either you’d be dead, or she would, or both.” He looked up at Séan and studied him for a moment. “Hm. You’re serious, aren’t you?” He sighed a long sigh. “Fine, because I don’t have the energy to fight you about it.”

~ Thyr

“We likely both would have been but I had no other option.” Séan said a little quietly. He then shook off the morose feeling and smiled as Thyr acquiesced. “Fantastic! I think it’d be better for you with Jezem if you could point to me as someone checking in on you anyway.”

Counselor Iven

“He’ll call me an idiot for not going to the hospital but he will be relieved you’ve been here.” Thyr shrugged, “Once you stab each other so many times, there’s really no scaring each other.”

~ Thyr

“It’s not the prospect of him being scared that has me concerned but that he’ll think I dragged you off to do something stupid. I’m nominally supposed to be a good influence on you.” Séan said while he grinned ironically.

Counselor Iven

“I meant he’d attempt to scare me, but… I agree, moot point. If he says something, ask him what he’d do if Argam were kidnapped.” Shivan grinned, “He’d do something equally stupid I think.”

~ Thyr

“I’ll keep that in mind.” Séan said with a chuckle. “I imagine you’d volunteer to help him out right away if he told you what he was up to.”

Counselor Iven

“Of course, I’d have to,” Shivan said without hesitation. “He’s my captain but he’s also like my brother.”

~ Thyr

“A brother who has stabbed and poisoned you?” Séan remarked lightly. “I’m glad for being an only child in that case.”

Counselor Iven

Shivan shrugged. “I stabbed and poisoned him back.” He looked up at Séan, “It may not be how most people would be but… We aren’t really most people, are we?”

~ Thyr

“I suppose not.” Séan nodded lightly. “I suppose I wouldn’t enjoy talking with you both as much as I do if you were most people.”

Counselor Iven

“You like talking to us? You must be as insane as we are. Then again, what do they say about therapists and studying to learn more about themselves?” He said and grinned at Séan.

~ Thyr

“I think it’s more apt to say that doctors make horrible patients. I’m much better at analyzing others than self-analyzing.” Séan shook his head and sighed. “I had to have my failings literally beat out of me as a kid. Though you know everyone is a work in progress. It doesn’t stop until you do.”

Counselor Iven

Shivan let out an exaggerated “humph” of annoyance. “Don’t give me that self improvement garbage.” He moved like he was going to get up, decided against it, and relaxed into the sofa again. “One of these times, to the surprise of no one, I’ll end up dead, and it won’t matter.”

~ Thyr

“Please spare me the self-pity Thyr.” Séan sighed with a modicum of annoyance. “If you think your ending up dead isn’t going to matter then you’re a larger moron than I thought. And if I wasn’t concerned that your injury would be seriously aggravated I’d tell Jezem what you told me.”

Counselor Iven

Shivan looked up at Séan, genuinely surprised. “Tell Jezem what? That my ending up dead won’t matter? You think he’d argue that? Are you sure you know who the moron here is?”

~ Thyr

Séan shook his head. “No, I’m pretty sure it’s you on this topic. But let me steer the direction of this onto the point I want to make and then we can revisit why I’m right. After your falling out with the Syndicate I’m assuming Jezem went to great personal risk and significant investment to get you safely to Oed and establish a second life for you. If it was strictly because of his responsibilities as a Captain I very much doubt he would have done so no matter how seriously he takes it. Additionally he has no problem with using violence as a solution to things and with you being here it put him at risk but more importantly puts Argam in the crosshairs as well. With that being the case he could have much more easily dispensed with his former Captain responsibility by granting you a swift and painless death or saving your life in that moment and sending you anywhere else but here. He did not do that though. Instead he brought you close where he can keep an eye on you and keep you safe despite the risks. I know you question to yourself why because who wouldn’t. So if he has nothing to gain by continuing to protect you then it has to be for a more emotional reason. He values your wellbeing far more than you seem to realize. So to not realize that you matter to people, and very clearly to Jezem, but still insist that you don’t makes you a moron.”

Counselor Iven

With noticeable pain, Thyr pulled himself back to a sitting position and gave Séan a look. “You’re right on some points, mostly that my presence threatens Argam’s life as well as Jezem’s, but everything else is wrong. Jezem didn’t bring me to Oed, in fact we hadn’t spoken in years until I got myself here and we met by chance.” He leaned against the back of the sofa with a small sigh, “I can’t tell you why he didn’t just end me when we met, or better yet for him, turn me over to them. But I will tell you the only person Jezem has ever cared for is Argam, and that only happened because Argam paid Jezem’s way out of the Syndicate in good standing.”

~ Thyr

“So some of the details are different than I thought but that doesn’t invalidate my point.” Séan shrugged as he rebuffed Thyr’s deflection. “Do you honestly think Jezem would be a house husband to anyone just because they bought his freedom? Sure he loves the lifestyle and the glamor it brings, both in clothes and status, but gratitude does not equate to marrying someone and shacking up with him. No, I suspect Jezem would have repaid the favor in some way then disappeared if there wasn’t more to it.”

Counselor Iven

“Honestly it surprises me he did it at all, but,” Shivan shrugged, “What do I know?” He looked at Séan, “So you’re saying, because he didn’t do the logical thing, he must care.”

~ Thyr

“As if you’re one to care about or use logic.” Séan grinned at Thyr. “But for the sake of our discussion I’m not saying he’s being illogical with his choices but more going off of a hierarchy of motivations. His safety and wellbeing is high on his priorities, as is reasonable I would think, but then you have to consider his desired lifestyle as well as who he would find acceptable to be his partner. While the lifestyle is nice and can certainly be provided by Argam I’m not sure he would need Argam to attain it. With that being the case I’m of the opinion that partner suitability ranks higher in his priorities. Which brings us to whether or not bailing Jezem out of the Syndicate is enough to earn his affection. I’m going to say it certainly didn’t hurt but the reason they worked together on business was more the ‘buy in’ that getting Jezem out returned.”

Counselor Iven

“I know Jezem does a lot of business stuff for Argam, the same kinds of things he helps me with.” He shrugged, “I don’t spend that much time thinking about their relationship.”

~ Thyr

“Their relationship isn’t important overall but understanding Jezem’s motivations is.” Séan shifted the topic back to his point. “He has a motivation to have married Argam that goes beyond getting bought out of a life of crime. That’s my read on it anyway. Similarly he has to be motivated by something other than your previous affiliation with each other to take this risk. Having been your Captain means he would fulfill the obligation he has given himself to help you, but not at the potential risk to Argam. You have to matter to him enough that your safety is a high enough priority.”

Counselor Iven

Shivan huffed uncomfortably. “I’ll believe that the day Jezem says it himself.” He replied. “You planning on staying longer? There’s food in the fridge if you want it.”

~ Thyr

Séan looked amused as Thyr deflected, again. “Would you like me to stay longer?” He asked while knowing that Mika was likely going to be asleep a little longer.

Counselor Iven

“Up to you.” Shivan said, but Séan would know he liked someone he trusted to be around when something was wrong with him.

~ Thyr

“I’ve got a little bit of time to hang out.” Séan said as he got up and moved towards the fridge. “Do you want something out of here too?”

Counselor Iven

“The Orion spice soup. It’s in a thermos.” Shivan replied. “If we tell Jezem, he might bring me some of that nasty health drink.... I swear it works, though.”

~ Thyr

Having grabbed the thermos and a couple of cups, Séan poured the soup, heated them, then brought them over to the sitting area where he handed one to Thyr. “Is this from Jezem?”

Counselor Iven

Shivan took it and took a bite. “Yeah, he brings me food a lot, so I don’t eat ‘that replicated garbage’ so often.” He shrugged, “It’s not that bad but nothing compares to Jezem’s food, even if it is all Orion.”

~ Thyr

“Did he tell you he came over to teach me how to cook but all I had in my quarters was a replicator? ‘How are you going to eat anything but that crap, unhealthy food if you have nothing to cook on?’” Séan laughed at the memory.

Counselor Iven

Shivan grinned a little. “I don’t know, man, you’ve got a girlfriend to cook for. Maybe it’s time to invest in a cooking setup?”

~ Thyr

Séan shook his head with amusement. “Other than galivanting around to find an abducted person I rarely have the free time for stuff like that. It’s either replicated, gotten from the hospital cafeteria, or the food trucks outside the complex.”

Counselor Iven

Shivan shrugged and shook his head. “Good luck telling Jezem that.” He thought for a moment, “I’m a little surprised you don’t get anything to cook on.”

~ Thyr

It was Séan’s turn to shrug. “It’s not that I’m against it but growing up on a freighter gets you into a certain routine. Fresh food was never aboard the ship because it would take up space that could be otherwise used for freight.”

Counselor Iven

“Our ship didn’t have a replicator, so it was fresh food or starve.” Shivan said. “I would much rather replicate food, it’s so much easier. But if Jezem wants to cook for me, who am I to stop him?”

~ Thyr

Séan sighed as a thought came to him. “Tandra and I haven’t had a chance to talk about long term goals or anything like that. We were going on a date before…” He gestured as if encompassing everything they went through over the last many hours.

Counselor Iven

Shivan chuckled. “You’ll get the chance to talk about all you want I’m sure. Not much else to do in a hospital.”

~ Thyr

Séan sighed again. “Yeah that’s fair enough. I suppose there will be plenty of things to talk about. Doctor Fayth is unlikely to let her go until physically she’s in near perfect condition. Her psychological well-being will have to be someone else’s domain. Certainly not mine.”

Counselor Iven

“There have to be other counselors around here,” Thyr said with a shrug. “If you’re that worried about it.”

~ Thyr

“I would be worried for anyone that got abducted and tortured for hours.” Séan pointed out. “As gruff as you present yourself, I’d be especially worried about you.” He tried some of the spiced soup.

Counselor Iven

Shivan scoffed. “Why? I’m a little stronger than some little counselor girl. I’ve never been tortured for that long, but it’s happened.”

~ Thyr

“I’m a naturally caring soul who can’t help but be worried for my friends.” Séan retorted with a barely concealed smug expression.

Counselor Iven

Shivan scowled. “Is that your way of adding yourself to the list of people who care if I die?”

~ Thyr

“Of course.” Séan said simply. “Why? Can I not be on the list of people who care if you die?”

Counselor Iven

“No one says you can’t. No one says that’s smart, either.” Shivan was in pain, trying to hide it, but Séan knew him well enough he might be able to tell.

~ Thyr

While ignoring Thyr’s glib attitude, Séan took notice of his discomfort. “You want me to help you into bed and get out of your hair so you can get some rest?”

Counselor Iven

Shivan nodded yes, then looked at the time and cursed. “No, I need to open the shop soon. Can’t go to sleep… I’ll sleep all day.”

~ Thyr

“Yeah… no. You can barely move as it is and not wince in pain.” Séan put on a frowny face and disapproved of Thyr’s inane decision. “I’d be surprised if you can get down those stairs and not bleed all over the place. You’re going to get into bed and rest even if I had to wrestle you into it.”

Counselor Iven

“Hmmm… You, wrestling me. That sounds fun. Another time, maybe.” He frowned, “Maybe I can call Ragna, see if she has time. Alright, fine. Bed it is.”

~ Thyr