Bree and the Wrecking Ball (Part 1)

Posted on Wed Apr 29th, 2026 @ 3:58am by Captain Elizabeth F. "Liz" Beurling & Lieutenant Commander Brennyn Scott M.D.

1,424 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: The Breen
Location: Sickbay, Deck 7
Timeline: March 19, 2397

Bree genuinely enjoyed helping to treat patients in Sickbay, whatever their concern. Professionally, it helped keep her apprised of what was going on with the crew and how medical concerns could impact psychological concerns, and it kept her seen in a way that hopefully made coming to her for emotional support. Personally speaking, it gave her variety in her day, and sometimes, like today, it gave her a genuine sense of joy and hope in the midst of sobering danger.

"It's good to see you again," Bree greeted as she guided the heavily pregnant Liz back to a biobed.

"It's great to be on a ship where I'm valued." Liz replied, rubbing her belly. "Little Timmy here's getting stronger every day... He's gonna be an ass kicker just like his mama..."

Scott laughed. “I like the way you think. It would be totally understandable and normal if you wanted to complain a little or a lot about being pregnant, but I think sometimes it helps to consider the upside.“ As they approached the bio bed, Bree offered, “Would you like a little help? I know babies can keep people off balance in more ways than one.”

"No need to remind me..." Liz grumbled. "But I appreciate the assist regardless."

As she was helped up onto the biobed, Liz continued her thought.

"I've done my share of complaining about this pregnancy enough already." She said. "When I came to this ship, I tried to start framing it from a different point of view. Because if I'm going to go through with this and bring this child to term, I wouldn't be a healthy mother if all I did was complain..."

“That’s true,” Bree agreed with a thoughtful nod. “Still, I imagine it’s not been easy.” She paused, then added, “I’ve wanted to let you know I’m on your side for awhile now, but I haven’t wished to pry or give the impression you’re under scrutiny in any official way in my capacity as a counselor either. People have the right to privacy and not every stressful situation requires a counselor’s intervention, but I’d be lying if I said finding the line is always straight forward.”

"This whole pregnancy has been anything but straightforward." Liz sighed. "I mean, I betray the trust of my sister in arms, sleep with her husband, force him to creampie me, probably take another happy relationship down as collateral, and then after I find out I'm pregnant from the whole ordeal, I let the mommy squad vibes talk me out of getting an abortion... Forget 2nd Lieutenant Orgasm... They may as well call me Captain Wrecking Ball..."

The cascade of words was some of the most colorful Bree had heard in awhile. While perhaps not rentirely unsurprising -- she didn't know Liz that well yet-- they were unexpected given the previously exchanged words weren't quite as blunt. Scott wondered if that was indicative of Liz feeling more comfortable with Bree or simply more emotional. Either way, Bree didn't judge and focused more on the emotion and meaning behind the candor. "If my recall of your medical records is accurate, Pon Farr had more than a little to do with your actions. Choices made in that mental and physical state are bound to be influenced by less than perfect judgment."

"You got that right..." Liz scoffed.

"I'm not here to judge," Bree reassured. "My goal is to see to your and Timmy's physical and emotional well-being, and that doesn't just mean checking in with my tricorder and asking you how you are for the sake of this pregnancy. I've not been through it, of course, but I imagine Pon Farr was just as disorienting for you as it was for him. There's a difference between being in control as your libido kicks in and being totally out of control of how you respond to those urges." There was more Bree wanted to ask but she elected to take it a step at a time.

"Tell me about it..." Liz grumbled. "When I was first assigned on a ship together with Colonel Shimada six years ago... I hated her guts. She was the eternal obstacle to my happiness, the 'other woman' the guy I liked was seeing. Of course, back then, the official word was that he was dead. Neither of us had any clue he was alive until last year, but Colonel Shimada had always held out hope that the regs might have been wrong. It was something I came to respect her over, and she came to respect me in return... Then suddenly, we find out he is alive, and all my repressed feelings for him come bubbling back up and ruin everything..."

"Guilt and self-blame is a lot to carry, especially while you're growing another life," Bree replied. "I know this isn't a therapy session and I promise not to make it one, but it occurs to me it's just as important for your health to work on forgiving yourself as much as you forgive Timmy for the challenges he presents right now. Is there any part of you that doesn't believe you're totally to blame?"

Liz pondered the counselor's question for a moment.

"Not really." She shrugged. "Because even though my gut instinct is to blame Tatsuo's magic juice, it really should still be my fault for not considering that he was 14 years off contraceptives. Hell, he'd already knocked another bitch up, so that should have been a walking red flag..."

"Even in the midst of your own Pon Farr? That seems like a lot to expect yourself to reason through in the midst of your hormonal urges." It was true Bree did not want to turn this into a therapy session, but it was also true Bree couldn't just focus on her readings either. Still, she began to calibrate the biobed and her tricorder to multi-task, not because she was disinterested in Liz and in taking her time, but because she didn't want to be accused of holding anyone hostoge for non-medical purposes.

"Vulcans are expected to carry a lot of that burden, and this includes partial Vulcans such as myself." Liz sighed. "Then again, I suck at being a Vulcan even when I'm not horny due to Pon Farr."

"I think people are happiest when they're allowed to be themselves," Bree agreed. She could have said more, but then she really would be turning this time into a therapy session.

As she kept one eye on the biobed's readings, Scott offered, "This is a delicate question, and I mean no offense, but as someone looking out for your well-being, I'm wondering how you feel about parenting Timmy? There's no going back on carrying him, of course, but I don't wish to presume what you want to do after he's born."

"I've gone back and forth on the matter;" Liz admitted. "But I realized that giving Timmy up for adoption would only allow me to go back to my old ways, with this pregnancy being reduced to a mere nine-ish month inconvenience. If I want to take advantage of this chance that I've been given to change my life, then I need to at least give it a try."

Bree could understand Liz's view of this pregnancy as an opportunity, but a part of her also worried Timmy was going to be born with the job of keeping his mother from going back to her old ways. That was a lot of pressure all around, and if giving parenting a try didn't work out, another solution wasn't going to be around the corner any time soon. "No one is perfect at parenting all the time, especially the first time. What's your support system like here? Are there people you want present for the birth and people you want assisting you afterwards?"

"Honestly, I haven't really given it much thought..." Liz shrugged. "Everyone I had in my 'support network' on my last assignment has since been scattered across the fleet. And with a whole war going on right now, who's to say any of them have already given their lives?"

It was a sobering if reasonable thought. Naturally, Bree felt for Liz and wanted to do whatever she could to help, recognizing that even with support, what Liz was facing was not easy.

To be continued...

Posting by

Lieutenant Commander Brennyn Scott
Chief Counselor
USS Myogi

Captain Elizabeth F. "Liz" Beurling
Marine Commander
USS Myogi

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