Part two
Upon seeing the familiar surroundings of their quarters Tom finally allowed himself to relax. Unfortunately the pent up adrenaline was the only thing keeping him on his feet and he ended up nearly falling to his knees right there on the floor. He did manage to make it to the couch, though barely. He'd give anything at the moment just to have a few hours to lay down and rest. He couldn't remember every being so tired before. But he couldn't rest, he pushed himself up and shed himself of his uniform on the way to the bathroom. He threw the uniform into the recycler. He'd feel better after a sonic shower and a few minutes with the dermal regenerator. With the uniform off he now saw the rest of the bruising. Not good, but he didn't have the time to use the regenerator on all of it yet. He could do his face and the gash on his arm, the rest could wait until later. At the moment appearances were more important then comfort. But so far as comfort was concerned, there were ways around that too.
Tom leaned back in the turbo lift as it carried him to the bridge. A headache throbbed behind his eyes making the fatigue that much worse. Taking the pain suppressant was a gamble as they weren't supposed to be available to crew members for the exact reason that it was better to fix the problem by going to sick bay then simply masking it.
He straightened just as the door opened and walked confidently onto the bridge looking fresh and eager to serve. Perfect Starfleet officer mode! He nodded to Harry, who looked more then a little dishevelled.
The Captain turned in his direction, worry first creasing her brow and then relief at seeing her helmsmen looking virtually untouched by the recent incident. He took his place at the helm as the crewmen vacated the spot and familiarized himself with the recent course changes.
After three hours of sitting Tom wondered if his sore muscles might revolt and jump off his body on their own. It was definitely time for another dose of pain suppressant. He stretched backwards and glanced at the Captain. She was reading data adds in her chair, but she seemed to sense eyes on her and looked up. "Yes Lieutenant?"
He grinned, "Request permission for a coffee break?"
She smiled and nodded. "Of coarse." She glanced down at her own mug. "Mind refilling my cup along the way?"
"No problem." He stood up and stretched again, suddenly he realised one very big problem. The room swayed. He turned back to his consul and entered some final data to cover his momentary distress. He could do this, no problem. He left of the support of his chair and picked up the Captain's standard issue mug.
His foot stumbled on the stair. He caught the railing and hesitated a moment while all eyes turned to him. He laughed, what else was there to do. "First day with the new legs." He explained and took another step. Oh god, don't let this happen. He could actually feel the sudden relaxation of all the muscles in his right leg as his knee buckled. Tuvok arrived at his side first, rescuing the mug from his tenuous grasp and then helped Tom lower himself more gently to the floor.
The Captain appeared at his side next. "Tom?"
Tom blinked, trying to clear the spider webs from his brain. Dark spots were appearing in his vision. Harry's face appeared next. "Are you alright?"
He nodded and closed his eyes, anything was better then the spinning of the bridge. But he could still feel it even with his eyes closed. "I'm okay." He tried to get back on his feet, but hands on his shoulders restrained him.
"Just sit a moment." The Captain urged. "Are you sure you're alright?"
Tom nodded and counted to ten before getting back on his feet.
"Report to sickbay immediately." The Captain ordered. "Are you well enough to make it?" She watched him nod, but he wasn't convincing. "Harry, you go with him." Harry nodded curtly and took over the supporting role of keeping Tom on his feet. Slowly they made it to the turbo lift.
"What happened?" Harry asked.
Tom let himself sink to the floor. "I'm going to be sick. Deck five."
"No. Belay that. You're going to sickbay."
"I'm not dying Harry, I'm going to throw up. My quarters are closer." Tom insisted.
It wasn't exactly true but Harry didn't argue. "Fine." He helped Tom back to his feet and they headed to his quarters. Inside they made their way to the bathroom and Harry waited as Tom sat on the floor with his face over the toilet bowl. He didn't throw up. "Ok, I'm fine." Slowly got up, picked up what he needed and walked to his bed to lay down.
"Sickbay." Harry reminded him.
"I'm fine, just dizzy." He opened his hand and Harry saw the pill just before Tom popped it in his moth.
"What was that?"
"I have a headache so I took a pain killer." Tom slowly got up. "See, better."
"I saw what happened between you and B'Elanna, are you sure you're okay?"
"Fine." Tom answered, this time more convincingly. "I'll even come back with you to the bridge and finish the shift."
"Don't. Just rest. I'll think of something to tell the Captain."
"Thanks."
Harry didn't acknowledge. He didn't like the idea of lying to the Captain, or yet again covering for Tom doing something stupid. And that fact that this something stupid could really get his friend hurt… he ordered the turbo lift to take him to sickbay instead.
"I'm the emergency medical hologram. I don't do house calls." The Doctor explained.
Harry looked around seeing there were no patients in sickbay. "Just check up on him." Harry insisted. He saw the moment the Doctor relented and grinned. "Thanks." He returned to the bridge with a clear conscience.
The Doctor walked to Tom Paris quarters but entered without knocking. Tom sat on the edge of the bed with a dermal regenerator treating bruises along his torso.
"So this is what you do in your spare time." The doctor commented wryly.
"What are you doing here?"
"Ensign Kim seemed worried about your welfare. Rightly so I see." The Doctor scanned Tom with his medical tricorder. "Mild concussion, why am I not surprised? No internal bleeding at least." He snatched the regenerator out of Tom's hand and assessed his injuries himself. "Am I correct in the assumption that these are man made wounds?"
"I fell." Tom answered.
"On a fist apparently. A report will have to be made of coarse. Can I also assume that your injuries stem from the recent excitement among the Maquis of our crew?" The Doctor waited for an answer but received none. "Come with me to sickbay and I will fill out the appropriate injury logs."
"Don't." Tom said softly and stood up from the bed. "You said yourself that it isn't serious. There's no reason this should be filed in a report." He swayed slightly feeling another wave of nausea rush through him. The Doctor reached out a hand to steady him.
"I imagine you have a good reason for bypassing protocol?"
"Remember the tension between Starfleet and the Maquis when you were first activated? I didn't want to aggravate an already tense situation."
"Seeing as I recall you are neither Maquis or Starfleet I don't think your current state will aggravate anyone other than myself." The Doctor reminded Tom dryly.
Tom ignored the barb and switched to another tactic. "No one else got hurt right? There's no reason to make an issue out of this."
The EMH caught a hint of desperation creeping into the Lieutenants voice. "Who did this to you Mr Paris?"
"No one. It's not a big deal."
The Doctor guided Tom back to the bed where he ran a more thorough scan. "I would say it is a very big deal." The Doctor started down at his tricorder and frowned. "Your injuries, including those you've already regenerated several hours ago suggest you were savagely attacked."
"It wasn't like that."
"Then how was it?" The Doctor asked.
"It was an accident. I knew something was wrong and I shouldn't have provoked her, it was my own fault." Tom insisted.
The Doctor looked around the room. "Lieutenant Torres?" He watched Tom's expression and knew he hit the truth. "She did this to you?"
"No. She wasn't herself."
"I need to file a report."
"No you don't."
The Doctor stood staring at his patient for a moment then made a decision. "Fine. But the Captain will be informed. The final decision will be hers."
"No." Tom could see he couldn't convince the EMH to completely ignore the incident, but he didn't want to involve the Captain. "The Commander is responsible for overlooking crew welfare."
The EMH considered the option looking for any hidden agenda, but could find none. He could not imagine the Commander being any less concerned for the well-being of his crew then the Captain. "Agreed. But you will still accompany me to Sickbay to finalize an official report on the incident."
"Okay." Tom pulled his shirt back on, relieved that at least he eliminated the worst of the damage.
Upon seeing the familiar surroundings of their quarters Tom finally allowed himself to relax. Unfortunately the pent up adrenaline was the only thing keeping him on his feet and he ended up nearly falling to his knees right there on the floor. He did manage to make it to the couch, though barely. He'd give anything at the moment just to have a few hours to lay down and rest. He couldn't remember every being so tired before. But he couldn't rest, he pushed himself up and shed himself of his uniform on the way to the bathroom. He threw the uniform into the recycler. He'd feel better after a sonic shower and a few minutes with the dermal regenerator. With the uniform off he now saw the rest of the bruising. Not good, but he didn't have the time to use the regenerator on all of it yet. He could do his face and the gash on his arm, the rest could wait until later. At the moment appearances were more important then comfort. But so far as comfort was concerned, there were ways around that too.
Tom leaned back in the turbo lift as it carried him to the bridge. A headache throbbed behind his eyes making the fatigue that much worse. Taking the pain suppressant was a gamble as they weren't supposed to be available to crew members for the exact reason that it was better to fix the problem by going to sick bay then simply masking it.
He straightened just as the door opened and walked confidently onto the bridge looking fresh and eager to serve. Perfect Starfleet officer mode! He nodded to Harry, who looked more then a little dishevelled.
The Captain turned in his direction, worry first creasing her brow and then relief at seeing her helmsmen looking virtually untouched by the recent incident. He took his place at the helm as the crewmen vacated the spot and familiarized himself with the recent course changes.
After three hours of sitting Tom wondered if his sore muscles might revolt and jump off his body on their own. It was definitely time for another dose of pain suppressant. He stretched backwards and glanced at the Captain. She was reading data adds in her chair, but she seemed to sense eyes on her and looked up. "Yes Lieutenant?"
He grinned, "Request permission for a coffee break?"
She smiled and nodded. "Of coarse." She glanced down at her own mug. "Mind refilling my cup along the way?"
"No problem." He stood up and stretched again, suddenly he realised one very big problem. The room swayed. He turned back to his consul and entered some final data to cover his momentary distress. He could do this, no problem. He left of the support of his chair and picked up the Captain's standard issue mug.
His foot stumbled on the stair. He caught the railing and hesitated a moment while all eyes turned to him. He laughed, what else was there to do. "First day with the new legs." He explained and took another step. Oh god, don't let this happen. He could actually feel the sudden relaxation of all the muscles in his right leg as his knee buckled. Tuvok arrived at his side first, rescuing the mug from his tenuous grasp and then helped Tom lower himself more gently to the floor.
The Captain appeared at his side next. "Tom?"
Tom blinked, trying to clear the spider webs from his brain. Dark spots were appearing in his vision. Harry's face appeared next. "Are you alright?"
He nodded and closed his eyes, anything was better then the spinning of the bridge. But he could still feel it even with his eyes closed. "I'm okay." He tried to get back on his feet, but hands on his shoulders restrained him.
"Just sit a moment." The Captain urged. "Are you sure you're alright?"
Tom nodded and counted to ten before getting back on his feet.
"Report to sickbay immediately." The Captain ordered. "Are you well enough to make it?" She watched him nod, but he wasn't convincing. "Harry, you go with him." Harry nodded curtly and took over the supporting role of keeping Tom on his feet. Slowly they made it to the turbo lift.
"What happened?" Harry asked.
Tom let himself sink to the floor. "I'm going to be sick. Deck five."
"No. Belay that. You're going to sickbay."
"I'm not dying Harry, I'm going to throw up. My quarters are closer." Tom insisted.
It wasn't exactly true but Harry didn't argue. "Fine." He helped Tom back to his feet and they headed to his quarters. Inside they made their way to the bathroom and Harry waited as Tom sat on the floor with his face over the toilet bowl. He didn't throw up. "Ok, I'm fine." Slowly got up, picked up what he needed and walked to his bed to lay down.
"Sickbay." Harry reminded him.
"I'm fine, just dizzy." He opened his hand and Harry saw the pill just before Tom popped it in his moth.
"What was that?"
"I have a headache so I took a pain killer." Tom slowly got up. "See, better."
"I saw what happened between you and B'Elanna, are you sure you're okay?"
"Fine." Tom answered, this time more convincingly. "I'll even come back with you to the bridge and finish the shift."
"Don't. Just rest. I'll think of something to tell the Captain."
"Thanks."
Harry didn't acknowledge. He didn't like the idea of lying to the Captain, or yet again covering for Tom doing something stupid. And that fact that this something stupid could really get his friend hurt… he ordered the turbo lift to take him to sickbay instead.
"I'm the emergency medical hologram. I don't do house calls." The Doctor explained.
Harry looked around seeing there were no patients in sickbay. "Just check up on him." Harry insisted. He saw the moment the Doctor relented and grinned. "Thanks." He returned to the bridge with a clear conscience.
The Doctor walked to Tom Paris quarters but entered without knocking. Tom sat on the edge of the bed with a dermal regenerator treating bruises along his torso.
"So this is what you do in your spare time." The doctor commented wryly.
"What are you doing here?"
"Ensign Kim seemed worried about your welfare. Rightly so I see." The Doctor scanned Tom with his medical tricorder. "Mild concussion, why am I not surprised? No internal bleeding at least." He snatched the regenerator out of Tom's hand and assessed his injuries himself. "Am I correct in the assumption that these are man made wounds?"
"I fell." Tom answered.
"On a fist apparently. A report will have to be made of coarse. Can I also assume that your injuries stem from the recent excitement among the Maquis of our crew?" The Doctor waited for an answer but received none. "Come with me to sickbay and I will fill out the appropriate injury logs."
"Don't." Tom said softly and stood up from the bed. "You said yourself that it isn't serious. There's no reason this should be filed in a report." He swayed slightly feeling another wave of nausea rush through him. The Doctor reached out a hand to steady him.
"I imagine you have a good reason for bypassing protocol?"
"Remember the tension between Starfleet and the Maquis when you were first activated? I didn't want to aggravate an already tense situation."
"Seeing as I recall you are neither Maquis or Starfleet I don't think your current state will aggravate anyone other than myself." The Doctor reminded Tom dryly.
Tom ignored the barb and switched to another tactic. "No one else got hurt right? There's no reason to make an issue out of this."
The EMH caught a hint of desperation creeping into the Lieutenants voice. "Who did this to you Mr Paris?"
"No one. It's not a big deal."
The Doctor guided Tom back to the bed where he ran a more thorough scan. "I would say it is a very big deal." The Doctor started down at his tricorder and frowned. "Your injuries, including those you've already regenerated several hours ago suggest you were savagely attacked."
"It wasn't like that."
"Then how was it?" The Doctor asked.
"It was an accident. I knew something was wrong and I shouldn't have provoked her, it was my own fault." Tom insisted.
The Doctor looked around the room. "Lieutenant Torres?" He watched Tom's expression and knew he hit the truth. "She did this to you?"
"No. She wasn't herself."
"I need to file a report."
"No you don't."
The Doctor stood staring at his patient for a moment then made a decision. "Fine. But the Captain will be informed. The final decision will be hers."
"No." Tom could see he couldn't convince the EMH to completely ignore the incident, but he didn't want to involve the Captain. "The Commander is responsible for overlooking crew welfare."
The EMH considered the option looking for any hidden agenda, but could find none. He could not imagine the Commander being any less concerned for the well-being of his crew then the Captain. "Agreed. But you will still accompany me to Sickbay to finalize an official report on the incident."
"Okay." Tom pulled his shirt back on, relieved that at least he eliminated the worst of the damage.