When I woke up, the room looked exactly the same as it did the night before. No windows on a Starship. I looked at my body scanner but found that the time wasn't written on it anywhere. Sighing, I looked back up at the ceiling, my mind flooded with thoughts that I hadn't dealt with yet. It was strange to have time to think. I had never had that before.

Mixed emotions swirled through my mind as I thought thankfully about Echo's death, but also about my new situation. I didn't know what to do next, or where to go now.

"Morning," the doctor said, bringing in the vague smell of coffee with him and carrying various medical tools with him on a tray. "I'm gonna do a full physical exam, to make sure nothing else is wrong with you."

I stared downward. My stomach churned. I knotted my fingers.

As he pushed a few buttons, the back of my bed rose, so that I was almost sitting upright. I didn't meet his eyes. My hands shook like leaves in the winter, just trying to hold on.

"I'm not gonna hurt you, alright? I'm just making sure you're not sick. I'm just trying to help, okay?"

I nodded, eyes still locked on my legs, hands clasped tightly.

Gingerly, he placed the end of a device onto my back, making sure not to touch me with his hands, and put the front parts in his ears. "Breathe deep for me."

With difficulty, I tried to take a deep breath in, but didn't make it all the way to the full capacity of my lungs—my side hurt too much.

"Try again."

I did, but once again, I didn't make it all the way.

He shook his head, muttering, and jotted something down on his PADD. He grasped a small cylinder that looked like a pen from the tray. "Look up at me."

Slowly, I looked right next to his face, into the darkened hallway. I couldn't bring myself to look him in the eyes; not yet.

"Eden, come on."

"Yes sir," I said quietly. I bit my tongue, afraid of punishment, and looked at his eyes. His brows were creased and he shined a light into my eyes one at a time. Even though I squinted, I kept them at his eye level.

I noted quickly that his eyes were brown, with little flecks of grey scattered. Odd.

More scribbling.

He scanned a device around my neck and continued jotting little things down. The scanners didn't bother me. No one was touching me, neither of us were looking at one another, and it was quiet. That was alright.

He scanned my side and looked back at me warily.

"Listen, Eden…I have to feel your ribs, because that's where you're having the problem."

The thought of hands on me again made me shake.

"But listen, I'm gonna get someone to be in here with us, okay? Maybe that'll make you feel better."

He didn't wait for an answer before he sent out a message on the intercom. "Lieutenant Uhura to sickbay, at your earliest convenience."

He looked back at me. "You'll like Uhura."

I didn't look up at him, didn't speak. Only thought about his hands on my skin. I stared at them, like foreign things.

"You called, Doctor Mccoy?"

A tall woman with caramel colored skin walked into the doors with purpose, scanning the room for the doctor. Her eyes fell on me.

"Oh—hello there."

My eyes fell before we had time to look at each other. I folded my arms into myself.

The doctor spoke from the side of the room, seemingly unaware that I could hear. "Listen, I need your help for a few minutes. She has injuries near her abdomen and ribs, but I've got to feel where the damage is. And I'm sure Spock has told you, she's more jumpy that a wet cat."

When I looked up for a split second, I saw the woman nod.

"Look, I would've just gotten a nurse, but she's more comfortable speaking in Vulcan when I can't understand her. So, just sit in here, hold her hand, talk to her in Vulcan, I don't care. Just something."

She stepped towards where I sat and smiled gently. "I'm communications officer Uhura, but you can call me Nyota, ok?"

I nodded. Eyes on the ground. Always on the ground.

"What's your name?" she asked.

"Eden."

"You speak Vulcan?"

I nodded again.

When she opened her mouth, I was surprised to hear a perfect, crisp accent leave her lips. Better than mine, honestly. My eyes fluttered up. "The doctor has to perform a check on your ribs to make sure they are not damaged. I'm here to make sure nothing happens that you don't want happening. Your advocate."

I looked up at her and smiled. "Thank you."

When I nodded, Uhura motioned for him to come over.

"We're gonna lay you back down now."

Gently, the back of the bed fell back slowly, I was lying back down on the bed, my head on my pillow. Uhura stood on the other side of the bed from the doctor, grasping my shaking hand. I squeezed my eyes shut as I knew the doctor's hands would soon come to lift up the top of the gown.

"They say the doctor has the steadiest hands in the fleet."

I ignored her comment. Steadiness was irrelevant in the current situation.

They were about to see.

They would understand soon.

His hands popped open the first button near my collarbone and all the ones after that, stopping near my pelvis. Cool air rushed on me.

Shocked looks on their faces.

"My god," he said under his breath, and staring at an equally shocked Uhura.

Bruises and cuts and scrapes, everywhere. Not a single thing untouched by the purple, yellow, and red splotches on my body. "I knew it was bad from the scanner, but…Christ."

"Please don't press too hard, doctor." I whispered. My teeth chattered.

He shook his head, still stunned. "No—no, I'm not gonna hurt you, darlin'." he said quietly, almost to himself. "Nobody's ever gonna hurt you like this again. Not on my watch."

"Who did this to you?" Nyota asked. She squeezed my hand.

"My past owners. I can only hope that the doctor will be a kinder owner."

"What?" she asked, shocked.

The doctor looked confused. "What? What did she say?"

"She thinks that you own her."

"Because he does," I interjected. "With all respect, he saved me from the crash, brought me back to life. I belong to him, legally."

"Now hang on a damn minute—"

"It is true, doctor." I insisted. "Please finish your check quickly. I don't like this."

He shook his head and began placing his hands on my abdomen, feeling for injury. I flinched and dug my chin into my shoulder, but if I was being completely honest with myself—his hands were warm and his touch didn't side over me like a snake. It was just where he needed to feel.

"It's alright. It's gonna be okay," he said quietly.

I bit my already raw lip, feeling waves of paranoia rush over me like the sea. "I'm sorry for my reactions, Sir."

Sighing, he answered gently. "Your reactions make you human, Eden. It's fine."

Uhura raised surprised eyebrows at him each time he talked to me quietly. I didn't understand it, but I shook it off.

Light touches near my ribs that didn't linger; prodding that didn't hurt as much as it felt merely uncomfortable.

He shook his head and pulled away before moving to button up my gown again. "Osteogenic stimulator," he mumbled to himself, leaving my side to get supplies. He called behind him, "You can go now, Uhura, thanks."

"Will you be okay?" she said, full attention on me.

I nodded, hopefully convincingly. "Thank you for staying with me."

She smiled lightly. "Of course. If you need anything, let me know."

I looked up at the ceiling as she left. I could hear the doctor fiddling with medical tools.

"I'm gonna run this over you and it should help speed up the healing process by a lot," he said once he was back next to me. As he scanned it over the length of my injuries, I didn't really feel anything. I looked up quizzically.

"Try to sit up."

I pushed up onto my elbows with a small amount of pain, but nothing completely unbearable. "Amazing," I whispered. I wanted more than anything to ask him how it worked, but I knew that would be a breach in courtesy. You shouldn't ask annoying questions to your owner.

He started scanning me with another machine, this one small and grey, that made a beeping noise every few seconds. He looked down at me and asked, "What's this you were saying about me owning you?"

"That you do. I am yours. Legally."

He squinted at me and grimaced. "No, I didn't buy you, I just patched you up after we found you in the wreckage. That's all." He moved the scanner to the side of my neck, pushing my hair away and I shrank back. He pulled back quickly, surprised at my quick reaction, but then moved it slowly towards me again, not touching skin.

"But that's just it," I started slowly. "You found me. You took the care and energy to heal me, then I must belong to you, Sir."

"I don't want you," he said simply, pulling the scanner away and moving across the room to place it back on the table.

I sat in the bed, shocked. "You would rather me be killed instead of simply taking me?"

At that, he turned to look at me. "Who said anything about being killed?"

"The rules state that if a slave does not belong to a man and is not going to be sold, then they are wasted space and must be done away with."

"They kill people for just…being in the way?" he said slowly.

I nodded. "It gives slaves initiative to do their jobs correctly. It does not always work."

And then I realized: I couldn't talk to him this way. This was against the rules. This was not right.

I ducked my head down and murmured, "I apologize for speaking so candidly to you, Sir."

"No, no, candidly is good, I—" he stopped as a beeping noise came out of his belt. He flipped open the devide. "Mccoy here."

"Doctor, you're needed on Deck 9," a female voice rang out.

He rolled his eyes and mumbled to himself, "If this is another prank, I swear to God—" he stopped before he left, looking back at me. "I'll be back later. There's a PADD on the table that I loaded with some stuff you might be interested in, if you like to read. But try to rest, if you can."

And he was gone.

I reached over for the PADD, amazed at the difference in the pain levels between now and earlier. I felt so much better. But as I leaned over to reach the table, I caught a view of my arm.

The bruises and scarring—gone.

Completely.

I searched under my hospital gown as well. Everything was healed.

How did he do this?

I assumed this was the second scanner's doing, but, how? How did these people have this kind of medical power? To get rid of years of scars and scrapes and bruising, and not even feel it leave the body?

I wondered if I could ever ask the doctor about the methods on board. Maybe he would be alright with it…after all, he did say that candid was a good thing.

I set the PADD in my lap and tried to maneuver it the best I could. I didn't really understand the controls, but I didn't have too much trouble. You simply touched what you wanted to read. There were twenty or so titles pertaining to different subjects, and I pushed down on the one that read The Marvels of Modern Medical Science.

Maybe now I could get some answers.

It would feel good to learn again.