In Recovery
Posted on 31 Mar 2026 @ 2:51am by Lieutenant Commander Elias Harlan & Lieutenant Jorik
816 words; about a 4 minute read
Mission:
Arawyn’s Itchy Trigger Finger
Location: Sickbay
Elias Harlan drifted back to awareness slowly, keeping his eyes closed and his breathing even as sensation returned. He was lying on his back, the biobed padding comfortable and familiar beneath him. The lights had been dimmed to a soothing level, and a warm blanket covered him to the chest. Soft murmurs of equipment and the occasional low voice drifted through the room.
Sickbay.
The realization brought a flicker of memory: engineering, a normal morning, then the sudden roar of an explosion and chunks of bulkhead tearing through the air. His eyes snapped open. A monitor beside the bed immediately chirped an alert.
“At ease, Commander,” a sharp, familiar voice intoned before he could move.
Jorik.
“Elias, you are in recovery from extensive neural surgery,” the Vulcan continued, stepping into view at the bedside. “Do not attempt to sit up or move your head excessively. The regeneration field is still active.”
Elias let out a huff of breath and fought the instinctive urge to nod. He could feel the faint tingling of the field across his forehead and scalp.
“The ship?” he rasped.
“The ship is safe for the moment. Engineering has restored warp power.” Jorik’s tone was calm, factual, knowing Elias would fill in the rest.
“I need to get down there.”
“You need to remain exactly where you are,” Jorik countered, one eyebrow lifting in that signature Vulcan disapproval.
Elias shifted slightly under the blanket, grimacing. “I feel weak… and strange.”
“Your strength will return. You are likely experiencing the effects of caffeine withdrawal more than anything else,” Jorik murmured, the faintest trace of dry amusement coloring his words.
“You didn’t,” Elias protested, eyes narrowing.
“It was medically necessary to repair the vascular damage in your brain. I will not apologize for it.” Jorik’s lips twitched — the tiniest, most restrained almost-smile Elias had ever seen on him.
Elias fought the urge to laugh, knowing it would hurt. “Despite your efforts, I won't give it up. But I need to work.”
Jorik moved closer, adjusting the neural monitor with precise movements. “You need to rest.”
“Jorik, please…”
“Elias.” The name came out softer than usual, weighted with something new — the quiet echo of their recent conversation. “The ship is being attended to. You are not indispensable at this moment.”
Elias gave him a weak, pleading look. “Come here then. I can’t see you properly without moving my head.”
Jorik hesitated, then stepped closer and leaned down slightly, concern winning out over suspicion.
It was the opening Elias needed.
His left hand shot up with surprising speed and smacked the combadge on Jorik’s chest.
“Harlan to Engineering, report,” he said, voice suddenly clear and authoritative as the badge chirped.
Jorik straightened instantly, silently fuming in that perfectly Vulcan way — lips pressed thin, one eyebrow arched high. Elias had gotten him again.
“Commander, it’s good to hear your voice,” Ryan Collingway replied, relief evident. “The damage is extensive, but we’re working around it. We’ve isolated the destroyed power tap and patched the coolant stack. Warp core is online and stable.”
Elias closed his eyes, listening. “But?”
“There’s an unexplained power draw we only just noticed. With sickbay’s usage dropping, it’s taking everything we have to maintain current levels.”
Elias thought for a moment, then opened his eyes and looked at Jorik. “I need to see it. It’s important.”
Jorik pursed his lips, clearly torn, but ultimately retrieved a large PADD. After a quick coordination with engineering, the screen displayed the diagnostics.
“It’s the shields,” Elias said, pointing with one finger. “Look at the generator recycle times. The regeneration cycle is taking longer and firing more frequently than normal. Something is leaching power from the emitters.”
He paused, then added, “Confer with the bridge. They should know what shot at us by now. Inform them of the draw and the status of the shield emitters.”
“Understood, sir.”
“Harlan out.”
Jorik tapped his combadge to close the channel, then turned back to Elias with a decidedly unamused expression. In his hand was a hypospray loaded with sedative.
“Now you will rest?” he asked, voice perfectly level but carrying a faint edge of exasperation.
Elias gave him a small, tired smile — the kind that had always managed to crack Jorik’s reserve just a little.
“Now I will rest.”
Jorik pressed the hypospray to his neck. The familiar hiss sounded, and warmth spread through Elias’s body almost immediately.
As his eyelids grew heavy, he caught one last glimpse of Jorik watching the monitors with quiet satisfaction, the faintest softening around the Vulcan’s eyes.
“Sleep, Elias,” Jorik murmured, almost too softly to hear. “I will be here.”
Elias drifted off with the ghost of a smile still on his lips.
--
Lieutenant Commander Elias Harlan
Chief Engineering Officer
USS Arawyn
&
Lieutenant Jorik
Medical Officer
USS Arawyn
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