Scheduled Appointment

[OoC: the time of this appointment is after the 0600 senior staff briefing. The comments referring to Regan Ozan's tardiness should be disregarded. Val Etilen and Tal'Ara are simply in the waiting room, having a conversation, until the doctor calls one of us in.]

"Evil spirits," Val explained. "Banished from the celestial temple to Bajor. I was with a very cynical man who worked as a Bajoran house servant in the house of the Prefect.. he said Pah-Wraiths were a metaphor... for us. We were the ones banished and the misfortune of our people is a punishment for an unknown wrong."

"But then why the Orbs? If you are banished and forsaken by the Prophets, why would they even communicate with you?"

"If we are beloved of the Prophets, why would they be so distant? And why would they send demons to live among us?" Val shrugged. "I admit his theory may have been colored by his situation."

Tal'Ara decided she had gotten about as much useful information about the Orbs from the young Bajoran as she could without seeming overly curious. She will have more opportunities later. He would be a useful resource, so she decided to change subject.

She paused for the appropriate amount of time, and asked playfully "Out of curiosity, how does one go about procuring your services? Unless you find me attractive enough to spend time with free of monetary transactions?"

Val visibly brightened by this change of subject.
"No one's that attractive," he laughed. "One would ask me if I am free one evening.  I'm quite happy to meet in public or in private - though I don't usually entertain in my own quarters unless I know the person very, very well."

He glanced around for eavesdropping nurses and leaned close to her, conspiratorially.  
"He's a story you'll like, I think.  But you mustn't tell anyone.  The occupation is over, but one never knows who still creeps around.
"I was very young - only working for a year or so, and every client of mine up until then had been personally vetted by my mother.   I received a call from the secretary to a very powerful officer - one who was routinely the target for failed assassination attempts by the resistance because of his fearsome reputation for cruelty.  I was not given the option to refuse, and I suspected this might be the end for me.  That I would simply be the chewed up and spat out - unable to work ever again, if I survived at all.
Well, his pleasures were very specific.  I was given clothes to wear - the archetypical uniform of a Bajoran terrorist.  When I visited his room, he was tied to a chair, completely naked.  I was expected to interrogate him.  And the more cruel and cold my verbal and physical abuse of him, the more satisfied he was with the encounter.  When he finally submitted to my pretend demands, that was the signal to allow him release.  
"It was actually quite enjoyable for me too.  And in my naiveté, I thought that perhaps by giving him an intense and satisfying release in private, he would be less cruel to my people when he left."

Tal'Ara felt surprisingly aroused by this story. It was something that aligned with her sexually. A need to be restrained, a need to be hurt.

But she brushed the dirty thoughts out of her head and simply said, "Your optimism is admirable. But after a lifetime of working with cruel people, I can tell you that such releases do little to curb their cruelty. Because for those people, cruelty is a release in and of itself."

The burly nurse appeared in the foyer, "Val Etilen? The doctor is ready to see you."

Val resisted the urge to give the burly nurse a seductive smile, and remained cool.
"I'm sure it will be quick. It was lovely chatting to you, Lieutenant."

When he stepped into the doctor's infirmary proper, he regarded her with coldness, still remembering how suspicious she had been when he'd innocently alerted her to a medical emergency and ended up in prison for it.

"I've come for a checkup."

Regan smiled, pleased to see that he was alright after the adventures of the other day, "Sure thing. Anything in particular you need me to look for?"

"Well," Val crossed his arms. "I am meeting a client tomorrow who is an endangered species, and very sensitive to infection. I'd like to make sure my company won't jeopardize their health. What's more, I'd like to avoid being framed for murder again."

Tal'Ara nodded goodbye to the young Bajoran and sat there, somewhat disgruntled that she had been skipped over. After all, she was there first.

But she kept quiet and continued back with the numbers in her head.

Regan looked up sharply, "Da-an the Phylosian!" She said before she could stop herself. "Sorry. Sorry. That's your business." She had to keep her fascination out of her regular work. It was Val's business, "however... if it is Da-an, we'll need to check for a lot of funguses and bacteria that are perfectly harmless for most humanoids. I'll have take a lot of samples and it might take a couple hours for results to come through. They're not regular tests."

"Good, well, I'm glad you're familiar with their people," Val still couldn't sound out Da-an's species. "Da-an took a liking to me immediately, and I wouldn't want to pose any danger to them. What do you need me to do?"

Regan produced an array of sample jars. "Well, I'm gonna need you to fill up these. Every fluid you got, I need a sample. I'll get a blood sample now, and for the rest, I'll give you privacy."

Val waited, glancing at the ceiling while Regan took the blood sample, pointedly not giving her a flicker of emotion or warmth, then collected the jars and excused himself.

Tal'Ara continued to wait patiently for her scheduled appointment.

[OoC: :p ]