Chapter One: Space Rescue
On the bridge of the u.s.s. Defiant, Lieutenant Jadzia Dax stared at the runabout on her computer screens. "It's not answering our hails, sir," she told Captain Benjamin Sisko, who stood looking over her shoulder. "It appears to be unmanned, but I'm getting lifesigns."
Sisko tapped his combadge. "Dr Bashir, report to the bridge."
"On my way, sir," the doctor answered. Moments later, he stepped onto the bridge and joined Sisko, looking over Dax's other shoulder. "What's the problem?"
"Lifesigns on an unmanned runabout, but it's not answering our hails," Sisko responded.
"Life support systems look good," Dax murmured, "and I don't see any sign it was attacked."
"The occupant may have suffered a medical emergency," Bashir suggested instantly. "Permission to beam aboard, sir?"
Sisko nodded. "Get your supplies and meet Dax at the transporters; I don't want you going down there alone."
"Two minutes, Dax," Bashir told her, and left the bridge more quickly than he had come.
Two minutes and twenty seconds later, he joined Dax at the transporters with a bulging medkit slung over his shoulder. "Beam us close to that set of lifesigns," he told the operator.
"Not too close," Dax objected. "We don't know for sure he's in trouble, Julian. It could be a trap." She drew her phaser as she spoke, setting it on stun.
Julian narrowed his eyes. "You aren't going ahead to protect me, Jadzia."
Jadzia rolled her eyes. "You've rescued too many damsels in distress in those holosuites. But you want to play male hero, you take the phaser." She offered it handle first, but he reconsidered, shaking his head.
"No, it doesn't matter; I'm sure it's not a trap, and we're wasting time here. Let's get going."
Dax nodded and stepped onto the transporter pad beside him. "Energize."
In the split second before the beam took them, Bashir realized they never had agreed on how close to the lifesigns to be beamed.
The instant he materialized, Julian saw the man on the deck, and the next moment was striding forward, tricorder in hand.
"Careful, Julian! It could still be a trap."
Dr Bashir shook his head sharply. "No one could fake breathing like that." He dropped to his knees beside the still figure, and was completely astonished to see the man's eyes slit open. "Help…me."
The words were barely audible, yet Bashir understood or guessed at their meaning. "Yes, I will," he assured him gently, running a tricorder scan even as he spoke. "Just lie still; don't even try to move. I'm a doctor; I'll take care of you."
"How bad is it?" Dax questioned, kneeling at Julian's side as he studied the results of the scan.
"Bad," he said grimly, fitting a vial in his hypospray and injecting the pain reliever. "He has a fractured skull with a severe concussion, two stress fractures in his neck, a broken jaw, three broken ribs and a punctured lung, a bruised kidney, and too many minor bruises and scrapes to mention." He deftly inserted a tube in the man's throat and turned on the respirator to give him much-needed oxygen.
Dax looked around. "It doesn't make sense," she murmured. "There's no one else here…no sign of a struggle…"
"I don't have time to worry about that now," Bashir said shortly. Slipping a brace under the man's neck, he touched the switch to inflate it and immobilize the fractures.
"Will he be all right?" Dax asked quietly.
"I'll do all I can," Dr Bashir answered. He injected another drug, then scanned him again. "That's as stable as I can get him here." He tapped his combadge as Dax picked up the umbrella and hat lying nearby, looking at them curiously. * "Bashir to Defiant; beam my patient and me directly to sickbay."
oOo
Bashir began issuing orders the instant he materialized in the sickbay, getting the man on life support in a biobed. He couldn't help wishing for his full staff on Deep Space Nine, with at least one other qualified surgeon to aid him. The team here was highly trained and qualified, though small, but none of them were doctors. He would have to perform all the surgery himself, which meant triage to determine which of the two critical injuries was most pressing.
He began rapidly calculating, even as he assessed the patient one more time. The punctured lung would become immediately life threatening approximately six point two minutes before the concussion; assuming all went smoothly in both surgeries, the head injuries would take up to an hour longer to repair.
The decision was fairly easy, then, and the nurses and medics noticed no pause in his orders as he prepared to begin reinflating the collapsed lung. Then he would repair the fractured skull and relieve the concussion, followed by the bruised kidney and then the fractures in the neck and jaw. It was at least six hours' work, and then there were all the scrapes and bruises…
He spared a moment to wonder what had befallen the man, then focused all his attention on patching him up.
* Illustration for this scene can be found on my DeviantArt account
Next chapter coming next week!
I proofread all my stories at least once before posting, but if you see any mistakes I might have missed, please let me know! (Note that the spelling of some Avengers characters' names has been changed intentionally.)
Please note that I have internet access only once a week, and may not have time to respond to all reviews/messages. If you have questions regarding my Deep Space Nine or Avengers alternate histories, check my profile first to see if they're answered there. Thanks for your understanding! Barbie