[USS Tempest] The Playground from Hell
- From: TKilyle@xxxxxxx
- To: usstempest@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Tue, 5 Sep 2006 19:11:10 EDT
The Playground from Hell
by JT Swiftwind, Izra'il S'Erientae, Stan Zelany, Steven Striker, Private
Kammere, and Jack Menzies
Nothing is so strong as gentleness. Nothing is so gentle as real
strength.--Frances De Sales
The set up was a different one from the last time they set up a MASH. For
one thing, there were force fields with independent power sources set up and
the only people who could walk through them were those equipped with the field
nullifiers Lieutenant Le Beau had made them. That meant Delta company could
pass through. That was all well and good, JT supposed, but the kids were
going to hurt themselves. They'd already deployed a nets to stop children
from
bouncing off the fields.
JT looked at his Marines and shook his head. He had every bit of faith in
them but they needed reinforcement. He tapped his comm badge. "Sick Bay,
this is Swiftwind down in the shuttle bay."
Izra'il glanced at Cassiel but he was engrossed with one of the Marine
medics so she tapped her own badge. "Sick Bay here. How may we serve,
Captain?"
"Reinforcement," JT said bluntly. "We need a bit more of a medical hand
than what my medics down here have got. These kids are going to hurt
themselves--or us--if something doesn't get done,"
"We have nurses to spare but that is it," she informed him. "There is
precious else I can offer as we are dealing with a medical emergency of our
own."
"No offense to any of them but send a strong one then," JT requested. He
watched as Stan forcibly, but gently, separated a group of boys. "These kids
might be scrawny bit they're strong as hell."
"I am Vulcanoid, will I suffice?" she asked, already making her way to a
turbolift.
"Perfect. Just stop outside the door and take a nullifier from the guard
posted there. You can't get in or out otherwise."
"As you say," she said stiffly before cutting the connection. Marching out
of the turbolift, she fixed oddly pale eyes on the guard at the door, her
blonde hair pulled into a tight knot at the back of her head. "I am here as
medical assistance at the request of Captain Swiftwind. You will allow me to
enter."
The private nodded sharply. "Aye, ma'am, you can," he said, all business
even if the thought of a Romulan nurse freaked him out. "as soon as you a fix
the nullifier to your comm badge. Else you'll get zapped." He held the
small chip out to her.
Taking it, she applied it to her comm badge then fixed stern eyes on him
again. "Zap is not an official military designation, Private."
"Ah, no, ma'am, it's not but complete neurological shock takes too long,"
the private said dead pan. "Zap works better." The man coded open the door,
saying, "Welcome to the playground from hell."
She shot him a disapproving look then marched past. Hell was one of the
many Human concepts that she found it hard to come to terms with. It implied
a
personification of evil that simply did not exist in Romulan culture. Her
pale eyes took in the children and Marines and the Hell as the Private had
called it. They quickly found Captain Swiftwind so she approached him.
"I am here as ordered, sir," she said simply.
It had technically been a request but JT didn't care to argue the point. He
waved a hand at the tableau before them. "Based on my own good guesses and
what information we got from Georgetown, I'd guess the kids are no older than
sixteen but the littler ones're close to five or six. They're also out of
hand for the most part. They've learned touching the force field's a bad idea
but that's about it. We're supposed to get them checked out."
"Sedate them," came the simple Romulan solution. "Use a gentle anaesthetic
gas to calm them down, something that will make them drowsy rather than knock
them out. We can always up the dose if it does not work. The alternative,"
she met his dark eyes with her own pale ones, "is to injure them and us
trying to perform the necessary treatments. These are wild animals, Captain,
you
must alter your perspective and cease to treat them as intelligent beings
until we have them under control."
JT hmmphed, nodding his head wearily. "My only concern is the speed of
effect. If it doesn't go fast enough, somebody'll catch on and get worse.
Ever
see an animal get shot with a tranque dart? They always get nastier before
they go under."
"I have observed many such things," she sniffed. "I have also observed the
results of leaving wild animals to tear each other apart. Is that what you
wish for these children?"
He skewered her with a look that as much as shouted 'you have to be
kidding'. "Hardly," he snorted, "but don't say I didn't warn you. Let me
warn my
people so they can activate the personal shields on their nullifiers and then
do what you have t'do."
She prepared the computer, telling it the exact dose she wanted of the mild
sedative. It was fast acting but shouldn't hurt them even in their weakened
state. At least, that was the theory. "I am ready."
JT put two fingers to his mouth, issued a sharp whistle that got his
Marines' attention and, fortunately or unfortunately, their refugees' as well.
"Incoming anesthetic, people. Follow proper procedure," he called out then he
nodded at Izra'il. "You, too. Y'all aren't going t'be useful if you're out
cold."
Giving him a withering look, she sniffed as she administered the drug
through the vents. Within moments the children were becoming drowsy.
The largest of the refugees was a fusion who looked to be mostly Klingon but
his wide build and ears suggested more, maybe Orion and maybe Vulcanoid. He
eyed the smaller, weaker ones warily as the seemed to drop off then he
watched the ones who dressed alike. The one near the female who was dressed
differently wasn't the biggest but he made sounds and the others listened. He
was
the one who would take food from him. Who would own him and send him to the
traders to be used. Despite the wobbliness in him as the gas began to work,
the fusion launched himself at the one in charge with amazing speed.
"What the--Hey, Cap, watch out!" Stan shouted.
JT ducked and raised his arm to deflect the attack, shoving the fusion
toward the barrier after the child clamped down on his arm with razor sharp
teeth.
"Son of a bitch!" he barked. "Somebody zap that kid before he chomps on
anyone else."
Delicate fingers found the Klingon child's nerve point in his neck and he
dropped. Izra'il caught him deftly and lowered him to the floor. "Something
one of my Vulcan nurses once taught me," she mused as she straightened and
eyed JT's arm. "You are the one who refuses modern medical techniques, are
you
not, Captain?"
"Neat trick though," Stan snorted amiably as he moved the kid.
"Damn it, the little bastard got me good," JT hissed, his right hand
clamping over the wound on his left arm. He nodded at the nurse. "That'd be
me,
scourge of modern medicine. You do know Kawee's gonna be upset about this,
right?"
"Nurse Swiftwind will forebear, for now we must stem the bleeding and clean
up the wound. Are you opposed to antiseptics or may I replicate a
rudimentary one for you?"
"No replicating," he said, shaking his head even as he eyed the children
warily. He hated to think them animals but it's what they were at that point
and animals loved the smell of blood. "As much as it hurts, pure alcohol
would
suffice for now, ineffective as it is."
"Hmph," Izra'il sniffed. She turned to stare at one of the Marines who was
helping one of the children lie down. "You," she said sharply. "Run to the
hydroponics bay and bring me back eucalyptus leaves." When all he did was
gape, she made shooing motions. "Now."
Steven nodded and scampered away, glancing backwards at her all the time.
"I assume the antiseptic properties of eucalyptus are acceptable," she said
to JT. "I do not inflict pain unless absolutely necessary."
"Koala chow?" JT asked, almost laughing despite the gravity of the
situation. "So long as it isn't replicated, it's fine. Smells nice, in any
case."
He took his eyes off her a moment so that he could survey the enclosure. The
children all seemed more sedate if not out right asleep. Stan gave him a
questioning look, asking 'you okay?' and his nod was enough to satisfy the big
man. Turning back he asked Izra'il, "You're familiar with Earth botanicals
then?"
"I have made it part of my assignment here to learn as much about all
cultures I come into close contact with as I can," she said as she took his
arm and
started looking it over. The bite was deep and would need stitches if he
refused the dermal regenerator. "You will have a scar," she informed him.
"If
we were on ch'Rihan, I would have my brother make up a paste to apply to
prevent it but my knowledge of such Federation equivalents is still limited."
"If I do, I do, but you might want t'ask Master Caine about healing plants
if you're really interested," he replied, standing stock still as she inspected
the wound. "I gotta say, I think this is the first time anyone's ever
bitten me. Got bit by a horse once when I was a kid but never an actual
person."
"You will have to excuse my manner, Captain, but these are not people, not
yet." She glanced up as the doors opened and Steven came running in carrying
a handful of leaves. "Get me water from one of the pitchers and a cloth."
"No excuse necessary, ma'am," he told her. "Sad enough but I agree. These
kids're...what's been done is beyond against the law. It's a damned sin."
Izra'il didn't respond as the young Human brought her the bowl of water and
cloth. She crushed the leaves in the water, mashing them up then setting
them aside. Carefully, she applied the water to his arm, pushing it in as far
as it would go. "They must be nurtured back to rational thought," she
observed quietly. She met his eyes and smiled. "Love, Captain. These
children
need love and tenderness."
JT bit back a hiss of curses the moment the mixture hit his arm. Botanical
or not, the stuff still hurt like hell on an open wound. Nevertheless, he
maintained his composure, especially in front of his Marines. "And
compassion," he agreed. "Right now, I want them calm enough to allow the
social workers
and shrinks to start their job. We're just the tip of the iceberg. It's
also why we're all wearing cammies and not regular uniforms."
"You require stitches," she told him softly once she had finished cleaning
the wound up. "Without replicating, I do not have the appropriate
instruments."
He shrugged slightly. "Either leave it be til later or send one of these
guys out t'ask Master Caine for one. Or Sergeant Singh has them too."
"I will strap it until the situation is better under control," she told him
as she placed the leaves she'd set aside earlier on his wound and wrapped the
cloth around the whole arm, tying it tightly. "Perhaps we should start
seeing to these children."
"Absolutely. We were trying to sort them by age before I called you. It
also seems that they're mostly male," he told her.
"Then that may be why they are reacting badly to you and your men," she said
softly. "Perhaps they need to see softness in a controlled environment."
"If you're familiar with Sergeant FRix, she's a--the softest Marine I have
quite literally and b--she's the only female in this company. What do you
suggest, Nurse?" he asked, making an effort to keep his voice level.
His reaction was puzzling to her so she frowned at him. "I suggest
separating them off to see to them. Perhaps bring more of my nurses down when
they
are free, bring in as many members of the crew who are not involved in their
duties."
"Definitely but it's the trust part we're having a problem with. They don't
even speak Standard for the most part. I don't even know if we can start
with food."
"Start with words," she suggested. "The language doesn't matter, it's the
tone. A soothing word can calm a thrai."
With a shrug, JT lowered himself to the deck in front of one of the
children. He held up both hands to show he was unarmed. "Haaahe," he said
quietly.
The boy stared at him for a moment, his mind fogged. Slowly, he approached
the man with sluggish movements and touched one of the hands.
Out of the corner of his eye, JT saw his men tense. If you guys screw this
up, he said mentally, y'all are doing nacelle scrubbing duty for the
engineers til the crack of the next millennium. "Nice t'meet you, pal," he
said
carefully. With his other hand, he pointed at the rank badge sewn on his
uniform. "Captain."
Big, wide brown eyes stared at the pin, his mouth forming the word 'captain'
but not quite saying it out loud. One thin hand reached out and ran fingers
over the metal surface.
"Nurse, come closer if you will," JT said in the same easy tone.
Izra'il was very slow in her movements but even so the boy gave her a
startled look and scuttled around the keep JT between him and her.
"Captain," JT repeated, pointing at his insignia as he held his hand flat at
shoulder level. Lowering his hand slightly he pointed at Izra'il's rank
sign. "Lieutenant."
The boy shook his head firmly then pointed at JT. "Ca...pt...tain..."
"Exactly," JT said brightly. He didn't quite smile, remembering how FRix
felt about smiles. Not everyone found them friendly. He gestured to Stan and
Steven. "Private."
Again the boy shook his head. Only one could be called Captain. Just like
there was only one little boy called Jck in the mines and only one called
Wllm. How could there be two called Private? What kind of people stole
someone's name?
"Swiftwind," JT said pointing not to his rank but simply to his chest, just
over the spot where his tattoo was. "Captain Swiftwind."
Glancing nervously at the pale woman, the boy pointed to himself and
whispered, "Jck..." his voice cracked, the syllables hard to form around a
swollen
tongue.
He knew there were alien languages where there were sounds no Human could
make but it seemed that, in this case, there was simply a letter missing.
"Jack? Is that your name then?"
The boy nodded, creeping closer to the man again. In a hollow, broken
sound, he whispered, "J...Jack... M... Menzies..."
"Welcome then, Jack Menzies," JT told him. His eyes not leaving the boy, he
added, "Mr. Striker, could we get our young guest here something warm to
wear please? I think if he was less distracted by the cold, we might get
further."
"Sure, Cap," Steven said softly as he bounced off, followed by a pair of
distrustful brown eyes.
"Pr... Private St...riker..." Jack mumbled.
"Exactly and you're Jack Menzies." JT nodded then looked up at Izra'il.
"How old you think this guy is? I can't tell."
"By his physical structure I would estimate approximately eight for a Human
child," the nurse informed him.
"And when I was eight, I was runnin' around the res with my little brother,
learning to ride horses from my dad," he said with a sigh. "Jack, this is
Nurse S'Erienetae. She's fixing my arm." He patted the bandaged limb for
emphasis.
"Nurse... S... S..." He shook his head then peered at his arm. That name
was far too complicated to say. But at least she had a name. She wouldn't
take his from him. It was the only thing he had that was his alone.
"Jack, anyone who has the name Nurse can help you. They can make you feel
better. Will you let Nurse S'Erienetae help you?" JT asked.
"Iz," she whispered as she crouched down to his level, no longer towering
over him. Pointing at herself, she repeated, "Iz."
The boy nodded. "Iz..." He approached her slowly, carefully, all the time
keeping his eyes open to run if he needed it.
"It's okay, Jack," JT assured, even as he watched the Marine and other
children out of the corner of his eye. "Iz won't hurt you. I tell her not
to."
It was oversimplified and he knew that he'd probably hear about that later
but he wanted it understood. The nurse was there to help.
He trusted Captain. He wasn't sure about the lady but she seemed soft.
He'd seen some of the other boys who had ears like her. But none had blonde
hair.
"I simply wish to make sure you're healthy," she assured him.
"Healthy is good," JT stated. "Healthy means good and strong: like Iz here,
like me." He nodded at Stan and Private Kammere. "They're healthy, too:
big and strong."
The little boy nodded, his eyes staring all around as the woman knelt at his
side and took out a strange device that hummed when she waved it at him.
Izra'il frowned then nodded. "Malnourished but otherwise healthy. He needs
suppliments but he can take solid food. I would recommend one of the
doctors verifies my assessment before he is given anything stronger than a
very
weak tea though."
"Any sign of that infestation they have topside?" he asked. "Anesthetic or
not, those things start crawling out and they'll go off again."
"None," the nurse nodded. "The child is clean. I would suspect that these
children have learned by observation about such things."
"Alright then here's what we'll do. I'll have the company set up beds and
bring some tea, at the least, for everyone. They can be comfortable and rest
til one of the docs come down." JT gestured for Kammere to come over. The
lanky Marine stopped short, watching Jack warily. "Private, take three others
and set up a small MASH like we had the last time. I want the rest of you
to assist the nurse here with whatever she needs and keep an eye on our young
guests here. Calm now doesn't mean permanently."
Jack stared up at the new man. He was tall and staring right at him. Jack
stared back, hard.
"Put your eyes back in your head and do as you were ordered, Private
Kammere," JT said in the same tone. Even still it left no doubt but that it
was an
order.
"Aye, sir, right away," Kammere said sharply, pivoting on his foot to do as
he was told. Creepy little kid...
"Captain," Jack croaked as he kept his eyes on the man. "He is..." what
was the word? Jack couldn't remember what the word was. He knew the mine
word, but not the standard word any more. He shrugged, waving his hands
limply.
"M.... mean..."
"Who? Private Kammere? No, I think he's as afraid of you as you are of
him," JT said quietly. "Big people get afraid, too."
The boy shook his head and pointed at JT and then at Izra'il. They weren't
afraid, he could tell. They were sad, the woman especially. She didn't look
it but she felt it somehow. Like her heart was breaking. He used to hate
knowing what people felt. But it added to his survival skills. He knew when
one of the other boys was going to hurt him so he could hide. But now, he
felt their care, the strange people.
"I'll tell you a secret. Private Kammere will behave because he's afraid of
me. I'm his boss. I'm not mean but he has to do what I say or he gets in
trouble," JT said in a mock whisper.
"Secret..." he frowned. What was one of those?
"It means something we know but we don't tell others," JT told him. "Well,
Iz will know but we can trust her."
Okay, he understood those. Like when he had some food and snuck it to one
of the weaker ones. They wouldn't tell and neither would he.
Kammere returned with the requested equipment and the four set to laying out
the cots, complete with blankets. "You each will have your own space, no
sharing the cots unless you want to and there will be enough to drink, and
eventually eat, for everyone."
Steven wandered back too, his arms full of clothing. "I tried to get enough
for them all, but I didn't know what sizes, sorry sir."
"That's fine, Striker. Sort them out by size for them. Jack, my friend, do
you and your mates here know how to dress?"
Jack nodded. He supposed he did. He imagined he knew. Maybe some of the
little ones didn't but he couldn't work out how to make the man know.
"Don't worry. These Marines get dressed every morning. They taught them
that at boot camp," JT said dead pan. "Y'all can learn to dress like a
Marine."
Steven set out the clothes as best he could then picked up a set for the kid
the captain was talking to. "Here," he siad softly as he put down the shirt
and pants. "Kid looks exhausted, Cap."
"That they do, Striker." JT stood up and held a hand out to Jack. "You
want to help help your friends, Jack? I need you to tell them something."
The boy nodded.
"I know you boys have your own language. Tell them what I told you about
the clothing and the cots. Tell them that they're safe. Nobody's getting
sold, beaten, or harmed."
Jack nodded again. He tottered away, found one of the smaller ones and
crouched down to whisper in his ear. The little boy stared up at him then
across
at JT and Iz. Jack gave him a reassuring nod. The kid scampered away to
whisper in someone else's ear and so the word spread.
JT rubbed the bridge of his nose, forgetting that his arm was injured then
swore softly when it reminded him. "I think we're going t'have to draft Jack,
Nurse," he said wryly. "He's very helpful."
"I believe that would help the boy," she said softly, sad eyes watching him
skip from group to group. "He is so young... They're all so young..."
"Like I said: when I was that size, I was horse back riding and
fishing...tossing my brother in the river..." JT shook his head. "What are
they going
t'do with them all?"
"If they cannot find families, I would guess that they will relocate them,
find them foster families, orphanages," Izra'il shrugged. "Places warm and
safe."
Orphanages made his skin crawl, thinking of ones that were hundreds of years
in the past, where children were stripped of their cultural identity so
they'd fit in. "Education..." JT shook his head. "Would they do DNA
matching
and maybe find their genetic families?"
"I honestly have no idea," she admitted. "I am not a Federation citizen, I
have not been educated here. In the Empire, they would possibly do that.
Assuming that those who had found them had mnhei'sahe."
"The suggestion will go in my report," he said with a thoughtful nod. "The
Cheyenne might've done that years ago and I know mine would today if they
knew someone was ours."
"I would hunt until the end of my days if one of these children were mine,"
she whispered sadly. Pale eyes stared at the deck plating in front of her
eyes. "I would..."
"Even if they find out, a lot of people aren't going t'want them," he
muttered softly. "They have their own culture but most people aren't going to
call
it civilized."
As Jack scampered back, Izra'il gave the boy a rare, soft smile and reached
out. When he let her touch his cheek, she brushed his matted hair from his
face. "Then most people are veruul who do not deserve such gifts."
"Jack, my friend, I have a job for you, work to do but you don't even have
to leave this place to do it. Would you like to help us out? Be an assistant
Marine?" JT asked, smiling softly.
The boy nodded as the lady stood up. He watched her withdraw and he frowned
when she moved to help another boy. "She is sad."
"Yeah, she is and so am I," JT admitted. "Out here, children are cared for:
nurtured and cherished. When I was a little older than you, do you know
what I was doing?"
Jack shook his head.
"I was playing with my brother, riding horses, and getting spoiled by my
grandparents. I was wanted and loved. That's why we're sad, because all
children should be loved and wanted," he said wistfully.
The Captain was speaking about things Jack had no concept of. Horses,
brothers, grandparents. But he understood the sadness in the man's eyes so he
leaned forward and patted JT's hand very lightly. "We live," he said
solemnly.
JT hmmphed softly, almost to himself. Hearty little guy, isn't he? He's
the one who needs help and here he is consoling the adults. He grinned at the
boy then. "Yes, yes you do and now you'll get the experience of fresh air
and freedom."
Again concepts he wasn't entirely sure of so he simply nodded. They sounded
like they should be good things so he tried for a smile. It lit his whole
face up.
At that, JT had to grin. "My friend, I know you don't understand yet but
the girls are gonna love you. You're a fine lookin' guy."
Jack simply shook his head, a bemused smile on his face.
"And very helpful. One day, you'll understand what kindness means. You're
giving it out and you don't even know it. It's a good thing," he assured the
boy.
Izra'il came back with a small cup of lukewarm tea that she set on the floor
next to Jack. "Drink it slowly."
He sniffed it then sipped it, staring at her all the time. His nose
wrinkled as he set it on the floor. It tasted weird to him.
"Dare I ask what's in this?" JT asked, eyeing the cup.
"A very weak ceylon tea," Izra'il said, her eyebrows raised. "What did you
expect? Some poisonous Romulan concoction?"
"No," he said dryly, "nor did I expect any paranoia from you but that's a
whole other story. I just had an idea is all. Watch." He picked up the same
cup and sniffed it again before taking a sip, his eyes on Jack the whole
time. "It's not that bad."
"Of course it isn't," Izra'il huffed, her eyes growing a little wider as the
boy shuffled over to JT, took the cup back and sniffed it for himself again.
He took a sip then settled down to drink it.
"It's not my usual taste. I'm a coffee man but that went to a good cause
after all so..." He shrugged and nodded at the boy. "Old military and
political tactic, you know. Take the drink yourself to demonstrate trust.
Now,
maybe, the others'll go along a bit more easily."
"It is a good job that you did not ingest too much of it," the nurse mused
ruefully. "Much of the content is for strengthening weak bodies. I doubt
you need much strengthening, Captain."
At that, JT laughed brightly. "Well, I hope not but you never know."
Other related posts:
- » [USS Tempest] The Playground from Hell
