[center][h2]Exploratory Surgery[/h2][/center] [center][img]https://i.imgur.com/ZVTjx6o.png[/img] [/center] JP/Collab from [@Xandrya] and [@sail3695] Imani had propped herself up on the stretcher, eyeing Alana as she quickly moved back and forth gathering the necessary items. As much of a hardworking doc as she'd ever seen... ...and soon enough, Alana was instructing her to lie back down. She hovered over Imani with a syringe in hand when a male voice just outside was announcing himself and barking orders to be let in. The girls looked at each other quietly before Alana put the syringe down, mouthing to Imani to pretend to be unconscious. She'd already prepped for the "surgery", looking the part. "Yes, may I help you?" she stared up at the official, an annoyed and inconvenienced expression on display. Two Alliance soldiers stood outside the medbay door, their autorifles gripped and ready. “You heard the announcement,” the gruff sergeant regarded the woman who barred his way. “All passengers and crew go to the cargo bay…now.” Of course they were armed. "I do apologize in advance, but I'm afraid I can't leave my anesthetized patient alone." She stepped off to the side, allowing them a view of a still Imani feigning paralyzation. "While not an emergency surgery, this was a previously agreed-upon procedure. If I wake her this soon after putting her out, the consequences could be fatal." Alana was aware of the fact that Imani wasn't hooked up to the monitor, but surely it wouldn't even be a thought for these couple of goons. "I'm afraid I can't give out any further details. Patient confidentiality is something I take very seriously, no exceptions..." The sergeant glanced over the doctor’s shoulder. The woman on the table was pretty…pretty unconscious. Didn’t look like she’d started the slice-and-dice yet, but he had no clue about anesthetic. He hoisted his comm. “Captain Kondo,” he keyed the mic. “We got a situation.” [i]”Report,”[/i] his superior answered. ”Got two in the medical bay. Ship’s doctor is refusing to leave. Says she’s doing surgery on her patient.” [i]”On my way. Nobody in or out til I get there.”[/i] “Roger that,” the sergeant nodded. To the doctor he said “Captain’s on his way. We’ll wait outside…” before the door closed in his face. As soon as the door closed, Alana circled over to Imani. "We gotta be quick," she whispered, showing her the syringe. "It'll take a few moments but you'll be under in no time." With no time to get a word in, Imani simply laid there, wincing when the needle broke skin. Soon enough, she would start to feel lightheaded. It was then Alana hooked her up to the monitor, the steady beeping eventually filling the room. Once that was in place, she grabbed a tray and laid out some surgical equipment. If they wanted genuinity, they were going to get it. She was quick, but she was also careful to avoid raising suspicion. Captain Hideki Kondo stepped through the after hatch, heaved a quiet sigh, and made his way down the steps to the medical bay deck. [i]More scut work,[/i] he thought of yet another questionable police raid in which the military paraded its presence as partners in justice. [i]Nothing just about this,[/i] he mused as he found Sgt. Kilpatrick and a private awaiting him. “Anything new to report, Sergeant?” he asked casually. The sergeant was a towering figure, a man who spent his life in the field of far away postings and the occasional skirmishes they wrought. But, with age and gravity slowly causing his physique to sag a bit, James Kilpatririck had chosen what he thought a plum assignment to ride out his career and draw his pension. Now, looking into the quiet disgust in his captain’s eyes, the old noncom felt a certain kinship of the disaffected. “Been watching ‘em sir,” he reported. “Doctor’s prepping for surgery. He patient’s out. All the cabinets are window faced, so they couldn’t hide a stowaway in there if they tried.” “Thank you, sergeant,” Kondo nodded. “I’ll handle this personally. Carry on.” As the two soldiers moved to rejoin their comrades on the upper deck, the Infantry Captain knocked at the medbay hatch. “Doctor?” he called. “Doctor. I need a moment.” Her breathing had slowed, now what may come was beyond her. Alana left Imani's side and went to answer the door. She imagined what was to follow would be a quick glance into the med bay without much scrutiny. If they were indeed scoping out a certain somebody, they would not find evidence of their presence there. Alana opened the door. "And a moment is all I have." She deliberately blocked his path into the med bay, yet he was none the wiser as to her motives. "Please, I've explained to your men how I'm unable to leave my patient. Surely you understand?" His response was accompanied by a formal nod. “I do. I have no intention of separating you from your patient. I am, however, compelled to follow my orders…something I believe just as surely that you understand.” He pulled a pair of uniform gloves from his belt as he spoke. “With apologies, I must conduct a search of this compartment. You have my word that I’ll be brief, and that I shall not accost your patient. Once completed, I’ll post a man at the door to prevent further interruption.” One by one, the gloves went on, pulled with exacting effort over each finger to achieve the perfect fit. “Now, Doctor,” Captain Kondo’s gloved hands fell to his side, “if you’ll kindly make way, we shall be finished in a moment or two.” "I mean not to impede your investigation, please..." She gestured him inside, closing the door behind him and casually walking over to her patient's side. Since an anesthetic had been administered, Imani had fallen under her care and thus had become her patient. Play pretend was no more. Alana stood between her and their visitor. Imani's concern with being kept from sight was intriguing. What that entailed, who knew, but it was none of her business. The compartment was well kept, uncommon for the rudimentary treatment rooms found on most Fireflies and their ilk. Kondo moved with an air of respect, his hands touching nothing. A casual observer might get the impression that he was giving the medbay only the most cursory of examinations. Finding the cabinets as described by Sgt. Kilpatrick, he bothered little with them. Indeed, his eyes seemed largely fixated upon the deck and the bulkheads which comprised the walls. While he did notice scrapes which indicated the cabinets had been moved, those that caught his eye told of no frequent, or for that matter recent, activity that might’ve belied a hiding space. Likewise the heavy base of the treatment table. [i]If they’re squirreling people away,[/i] Hideki thought, [i]it’s not happening here.[/i] He rose to his feet, gloved hands tugging the bottom of his tunic to straighten it. The doctor had followed him about, always positioning herself between the female patient on her table and the Alliance captain. A logical reaction to having one’s surgical suite invaded, yet at times she seemed a bit too intent upon obstructing his sight of the woman. “Well, I think that covers it,” he said with a courteous smile. “I’ve inconvenienced you quite enough. Thank you for your cooperation,” Kondo offered an appreciative nod, then turned for the exit. “Oh,” he said almost sheepishly as he stopped in the hatchway, “there’s one more formality I’ve forgotten. I need both your ident cards, please.” She tensed, though without the risk of him noticing. "Uh, sure, let me get that for you." Alana reached into her front coat pocket, grasping what he'd asked for and handing it over. She had nothing to hide but a complicated personal past. Imani on the other hand... She may be in for a rude awakening. "Not sure if I'm gonna be much help getting you hers though," she shrugged. Stalling him wouldn't work, and they were an arm's reach from one another. "I don't do this as I would need a patient's consent to go through their belongings, but this is no regular circumstance..." It was then a thought formed in her mind. "May I see the order allowing you aboard the ship? I can always show her later in order to do good by her." “Of course.” After pocketing the ident of one Lysanger, Alana, MD, Captain Kondo produced his cortex reader. A quick tap soon had the screen glowing with the warrant and its’ clause ordering the military to conduct the search for [i][b]“improperly documented persons or evidence of unlicensed human trafficking.”[/b][/i] The officer held the device for her perusal, his eyes inscrutable as they studied the features of the sedated woman. She held his cortex. "Kindly appreciate that." Alana took a few moments to verify the information and she be damned, they were very well within their rights to conduct this search. A brief smile formed on Alana's face as she handed it back to him. "Let me see whether she has it on her persons then." Alana turned her back towards the captain, tapping Imani's pockets and right away feeling the rectangular shape. No way out then. Reaching inside, Alana grabbed a hold of Imani's ident card and pulled it out. She glanced it over and was surprised to see her picture, a smile as bright as the sun, but not her name. [i]Deborah Yo[/i] it read. Interesting. "Here you go," she turned to face him, no reluctance in handing him what he'd asked for. "When do we get these back?" [i]Yo, Deborah,[/i] Kondo regarded the card before slipping that and his reader into the pocket of his tunic. “All personal effects will be returned when we’ve satisfied the warrant.” He looked upon the sleeping Deborah Yo. “She’s pretty,” Hideki offered a smile. “One last question, Dr. Lysanger, if I might? Am I safe to assume that Deborah Yo is a crewmember?” Him and his questions. "I'm afraid not, not yet anyway," Alana lead on, recalling her experience and deciding to use it for authenticity purposes. "Usually I'm not for elective surgery on passengers, but with a few stops to go, and our need for additional crew in the future, she's on track." The captain’s brow furrowed. “An unusual response,” he commented, pausing as if lost in thought. A heavy silence descended upon the medbay, until a moment later, when the officer’s brows lifted. “Very well, then,” he offered a courteous smile for the doctor. “I’ll leave you to it. Thank you for your cooperation, Dr. Lysanger,” Kondo said, turning once again for the hatch. “Please give Ms. Yo my wishes for a speedy recovery.” With a polite nod, the Alliance commander stepped through the hatchway, sliding it shut behind him. Once outside, he keyed his com. “Sergeant Kilpatrick. Report.” “Sir,” crackled the response. “We’re nearly finished on the upper deck. No stowaways found.” [i]Interesting,[/i] Hideki mused. “I want two men with arms stationed outside the medical bay door at once. Nobody in or out without my permission.” “Roger that, sir. They’re on their way.” “Once you’ve cleared the upper deck, post guards on the stairwells and catwalk. Send the rest of your men to search the lower deck. Kondo out.” He tucked the com away, as the clatter of boots on the nearby stairs announced the approach of the medbay guards. The doctor had piqued his curiosity. Her physical tells hadn’t indicated falsehood, but the final answer concerning Deborah Yo’s status raised a number of questions. As he left his men to watch the medical bay, Hideki Kondo returned to the cargo deck. Getting away with it by the skin of her teeth, Alana breathed a sigh of relief when she was alone with Imani once more. She heard the chatter outside, which indicated they wouldn't be completely alone, but any further prying had ceased as far as she knew. Now, to deal with Imani…