Recruiting the Doctor

Posted on Tue Nov 7th, 2023 @ 9:44am by Lieutenant Commander Charles Dutton D.O. (AU)

Mission: What If?
Location: Lewistown, Montana, Earth
Timeline: MD 00
1243 words - 2.5 OF Standard Post Measure

The wind rustled the sagebrush around him as Charles sat astride his horse, a six year old gelding named Crockett. Crockett was brown with a black mane and tail with two white socks on his front legs. Charles was a competent horseman, and Crockett was one of the few mounts that he rode as much as he could. The wind was nice and cool against his cheeks as he looked out and surveyed the rolling hills before him. The sky was clear and blue, but the cool weather meant that fall was fast approaching. The view was what Charles had come to the ridge he was currently at. Montana was still known as Big Sky country, even though the population boom around Bozeman brought with it the technological marvels of the cities. After seeing nothing but the deserts of Vulcan, Charles had been taking daily rides out to this spot to look down at his home. His time in the Interspecies Medical Exchange had been enjoyable, but Charles being away from home for so long made him realize how much he appreciated it. That wasn't to say Vulcan wasn't a fascinating place. The deserts canyons had reminded him of the badlands of eastern Montana. He smiled to himself as he reached up to tip the brim of his silverbelly Stetson down further to shield his eyes from the glare of the sun.

It had been years since Leah Morgan had been to Montana. After she had graduated from Stanford, she had spilt her time between San Francisco and Boseman when she joined the NX Project. She had missed the mountains and the open space. Everything just felt more pristine. As the shuttle pod zoomed over the landscape, she listened to the computer read out the dossier for the doctor for the millionth time as she could not help but think that it was an odd place to find a doctor with such credentials. Looking below, she noticed the man on the horse. Knowing better than to give them a good flyover, she brought the shuttlepod down gently at a respectable distance to not frighten the horse.

Charles heard the sound before he saw the shuttlepod. He gripped the reins of his horse tighter as it settled down away from them. He appreciated the pilot had not flow over them. While Crockett was not easily spooked, one could not make assumptions. In actuality, most of the ranch's horses and cattle were used to the constant sounds of shuttlepods and other craft flying overhead. With Bozeman being one of the premier spaceports, flyovers were typical. He recognized the Starfleet lettering on the exterior of the pod, and when he saw the uniformed woman exiting it confirmed his suspicions. He made a clicking sound as he turned the reins towards the craft and Crockett responded by lightly walking toward the direction he had indicated. As he got closer to the woman, he pulled the reins up and stopped a bit away.

"Can I help you Captain," he said tipping his Stetson back slightly as he recognized the rank insignia on her shoulder.

Recognizing the man from his dossier, Leah stepped forward so they would not be yelling at each other. "I'm looking for a doctor to head my medical facilities," she began. "We're on a mission to make peace so Earth isn't caught in a two front war," she added, rather bluntly. Having lived near Bozeman, the Captain had learned to appreciate the locals and the value of getting to the point, especially when time was valuable.

Charles looked surprised at the woman before swinging his leg off the saddle and stepping down to the ground. He appreciated her bluntness, but he also knew it would be rude to continue the conversation while still astride his mount. He held the reins in one hand as Crockett stooped his head and began grazing . "Well, I am a doctor indeed, though I'm a reservist. I'm sure there are other physicians that have the requisite space experience on active duty," he offered before he remembered his manners and tipped his hat, "Charles Dutton, Lieutenant Commander Starfleet Medical Branch."

Nodding back, she realized that she had failed to introduce herself,"Leah Morgan, Captain of the Atlantis." Catching his role in the introduction, Leah replied, "Reservist, yes. And I'm sure I could go to Harvard or Duke and find someone with a piece of paper that says they are more qualified." Shrugging, she made her point, "But, you have put in actual time working with aliens in the Medical Exchange program. It will come in handy to have someone with real experience working on species other than Human."

Charles thought for a second and nodded in response. “How long would the mission duration be,” he asked. She was correct in her reasoning. Not many doctors in Starfleet had experience in Interspecies medicine, and Charle’s time on Vulcan had proved invaluable. He’d been surprised by the different approaches to medicine that other species had, and he had learned several techniques that could be adapted for humans.

"For now, our mandate is for six months," Leah replied. The implication was that it was a rather tenuous guess. Where Starfleet and the unknown meet, one could never be so sure. The next crisis was always around the corner.

Charles thought about it for a moment. He had just returned from his time on Vulcan, and now he was being asked to go away for another long period. He had expected this when he had joined Starfleet, but he knew that he wasn't due to be called up again for quite some time. On the other hand, the implications intrigued him. Exploring the unknown and the challenges that faced him were too numerous to ignore. He began nodding slowly before he looked back towards the captain. "Well, how soon do we leave," he asked giving her a small smile as he did.

The slightest hint of a movement in the corner of her mouth betrayed the smile that Leah was trying to hide. "All senior staff is to report to San Francisco within 72 hours for briefing," the Captain replied. "Beyond that, we are due to embark in four days."

"I suppose you've spoken with Starfleet Medical about my appointment," Charles asked. While it was the captain's ultimate choice to select him, being a Chief Medical Officer aboard a starship placed him outside the standard chain of command. Charles still took his orders from Starfleet Medical, and being a reservist, he would need their approval to become active aboard a ship.

"It's why I'm here," the Captain replied. While the Captain of an NX class was afforded more pull than most around Starfleet, there was still a proper procedure. She pulled a PADD out of her back pocket and handed it to Charles. "In it is a letter from the Chief of Starfleet Medical. You are cleared to join the Atlantis, though the decision is yours."

Charles took the proffered PADD, but didn't read it. He would look over it later, but he trusted the word of Captain Morgan. "Well, I guess I better be getting back and dust off the old duty uniform," he said with a smile before he looked out across the landscape. "It never gets easier leaving this place, but why pass up the chance to see the new frontier," he said before looking back at her with a wink.