Task Force: Gamma

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Drake moved through the ship. The Pellham was travelling from Deep Space 9, part of a fleet heading through the Gamma Quadrant. He was one of several officers called to the conference room. As he entered the room he noticed several high ranking officers and some lower ranks, too. Whatever was happening, Skyna felt the old anxieties rise up. A flash of memory overwhelmed him and suddenly he was on AR-558 again.

One of the few medics to survive, Skyna was almost suffering from shell-shock. His breathing was rapid and shallow, skin pale. Shock, for sure, he thought. Another houdini popped in a few yards over and the explosion sent his body reeling, parts of his unlucky patrol spread throughout the area. Screams of the wounded came into his clearing ears and he moved. Pull yourself together, Drake. He thought. He reached for a hypo and subdued the marine's agony. He looked around. How much longer? There were only a handful now, and the Jem'hadar were constantly probing them. How much longer?

Suddenly he was back in the conference room. He was facing the wall, the personal hypo in his hand, his forearm stinging with the injection. He swallowed and turned, noting that no one was paying attention to his self-medication. The morphine quickly spread through his body and the familiar warmth brought much needed calm. Someday this will have to stop. It wasn't that Drake wanted to be addicted to the drug, but he was afraid of the Post Traumatic Stress that seemed to overwhelm him whenever he felt anxiety. The shots helped keep him calm, but he knew that he was, in fact, a drug addict. Captain Phenn was there in the front of room and raised his hand for quiet.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, your attention please." he began. "You're here at the order of Starfleet Command. What I'm about to tell you is Top Secret. It doesn't leave this room. You are part of a first-contact team set to man a recently discovered space station in the Gamma Quadrant. As we are now three days out, I can tell you about it and some of your particulars." He raised a PADD.

"Ensign Rayle." A hand went up in the group. "You are hereby assigned as Chief Communications Officer. Liuetenant Skyna? You are Chief Medical Officer. " The captain went on, but Skyna heard little of the pep talk. Chief Medical Officer? Of a space station? Drake shook his head. That was a shock to be sure. After -558, Skyna had spent 30 days on Risa, unwinding and trying to forget the blood and bodies. Afterward, Starfleet had seemed to hold little interest in him, assigning him to Hospital ships and various other low-priority posts. Yet, now they moved him to the top of the list. CMO on a deep space station. Hmmm.....Looks like today might be a good day to quit, after all.
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