User:Bmullins/Paroxysm
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Introduction
This story came about when I first read the announcement from SFI about their 2011 Short Story contest. I wanted to write something outside of the norm, while making it interesting and fun. I had wanted to be selected as one of the five finalists because the special Celebrity Judge was Peter David. Mr. David is well known for his work with Star Trek, among others. I wanted my words to reach the eyes of a professional writer, hoping that he would want to have me write more and possibly launch my writing career. Currently, the jury is still out as the winner has yet to be named.
So with my goal set in place, I started formulating my story. What that means is, I wrote the first line and then hit the wall. Boy, this was going to be tough. I thought I knew enough about Trek to write a story on the fly. HA!! I went back to the drawing board and did it right.
The main requirement for the contest was the story had to be based on Star Trek. That wasn't really a problem. I started thinking, should I use existing characters instead of creating new one? I settled on using existing characters. It saved me from having to introduce them and wasting space on useless description. The added benefit of using existing characters was, with knowing them so well, it's easy to show their mannerisms and traits, since most of the readers have already been introduced to them.
The next hurdle I had was, what the heck am I going to write about? Along with loving me some Trek, I worship George Romero and anything Zombie! What's a fan writer supposed to do? That's right, merge them.
Once I had the basics of an idea, zombies in Trek, I had to think of a way to pull it off. Well, that very day, Fate tipped her hat, and I read an article on Cracked.com. Basically, it gave real world scenarios on how the Zombie Apocalypse could happen. I was amazed at the science behind it. It took me a week, but I read up on the science aspect and found a few real-world ways that this could happen. My thinking is, if it can happen in the real world, then it's fair game in the Trek Universe.
So I finally had my big idea. I finally had the knowledge or research to back up my story. The last thing I needed was a delivery method for the story. Basically, which crew was I going to terrorize? It came to me just as I thought it. Voyager! The reason wasn't because of any malice or hatred. I actually love Voyager. No, the reason they were chosen was because of how the zombie virus could be introduced to the crew. I don't feel like it could be done with TOS or TNG. DS9 you say? No way. They're a stationary story. It would be too improbable to do it, which is something to think about because it's fiction.
Story ideas were in place. And this time, I got more than the first sentence down. Once everything was set, it took only a week to finish. I was having so much fun writing. My family wasn't happy though. I pretty much ignored them. But sometimes, you have to do what you have to do. My biggest joy was getting the characters to do what I wanted them to do, within the constraints of how they act on the show. To throw another log of difficulty on to the fire, I wanted to set the time frame within the first season. I'm not sure why. But to me, it works.
Hopefully the introduction hasn't ruined anything. I hope you enjoy it.
Update - I came in 1st Place. Yay me!
Original Dedication
Chapter 1
A shimmering blue light breaks the darkness of the twilight in the midst of a thick jungle landscape. Lieutenant Tuvok materialized from the shining glitter stream into the heart of the jungle. The sound of rushing water could almost drown out the ambient sound of various fauna. Looking around, Tuvok surveyed the area, his Vulcan physiology providing superior acoustic attenuation. He raised his hand up to scan the area with his tricorder. Confirming that there was no humanoid presence, save for himself, he reach up and tapped his comm badge. "Tuvok to Voyager. Captain, I have scanned the area and located the probe, approximately 47 meters north north west". "Acknowledged Lieutenant. Proceed with caution. Remember, this planet is a pre-warp civilization. We don't want to alert them to our presence." Janeway said. "I understand Captain. I will be.. careful" Tuvok replied as he began his trek through the thick vines and overgrown trees. The sound of rushing water became louder and louder until he came upon a small lake and the source of the crashing water, a pristine waterfall not more than ten meters away from his location. Tuvok opened his tricorder once more and scanned the lake. A Starfleet energy signature appeared on the display indicating the position of the probe. Tuvok laid down the tricorder and dove into the lake, swimming to the probe's location. He attached a micro transport enhancer to the skin of the probe and immediately swam back up. "Captain, you should be able to initiate transport now." he said. "Acknowledged Lieutenant." Janeway said. Turning to her rear she said, "Ensign Kim, once you get a lock on the probe, transport it to Cargo Bay 2." "Yes Captain." Harry replied. Once the probe disappeared from the lake, Tuvok addressed the transporter technician, "Tuvok to transporter room. Ready for beam out." "Understood Lieutenant." Lieutenant Jones said. With another shimmering blue light, Tuvok appeared on Voyager's transporter pad, still wet from his night time jaunt into an alien lake. The transporter technician stepped down to greet the soaking Vulcan. "Welcome back Lieutenant. I thought you went to retrieve a probe, not go for a swim. Can I get you a towel?" Lt. Jones asked. "Your concern is noted, however, I fail to see the humor in my present situation." Tuvok replied as he turned and left the transporter room. Lt. Jones followed Tuvok out of the transporter room and came back in shortly thereafter with a small hand towel. As he knelt down to wipe up the mess from the transport platform, he began sniffing the air. Wiping off the water from the pad, Lt. Jones began identifying the smell as a mixture of mold with a hint of cranberry. Figuring the smell was from the water, Lt. Jones lifted the towel to his face and gave a big sniff. "What a weird planet." Jones said as he tossed the towel in the waste reclamation unit.
Chapter 2
"How long will it take for you to figure out what happened to the probe?" Captain Janeway asked B'Elanna Torres as Janeway circled the now defunct Class-2 probe, tracing her fingers along the length of the chassis. "It's hard to say Captain. First we have to clean out the access panel and make sure it didn't get saturated." B'Elanna replied as she placed her tool box on top of the probe casing, taking out a bolt remover and attacking the access panel. "She's pretty messy Captain. It might take a while to clean her up." "Thank you Lieutenant.” Janeway said. “Keep me posted." "Of course, Captain." Torres replied. "If you'll excuse me B'Elanna, I have to get back to the Bridge. But first I need to wash my hands. That muck feels disgusting." Janeway remarked as she exited the Cargo Bay.
Chapter 3
Lieutenant Jones walked along the corridor on his way back to his quarters. Passing other crew members, he gave a few nods of hello, until he stopped at an engineering team who were repairing the bio-neural circuitry behind a computer panel. “How's it coming along Ensign Toomey?” Jones asked the young female. “Just fine, Lieutenant.” she replied. Adding a hint of flirtation in her voice, she continued, “So, are we still on for dinner tonight, or should I reschedule again?” “I promise Ensign. Tonight. My quarters. 1930 hours.” Jones replied. “I guess I'll see you there.” She said as he began to turn to leave. Jones continued down the corridor until he began to stagger. Grabbing onto the wall for support, he touched his hand to his forehead as a sharp pain pierced between his eyes. After a moment, he continued on, hoping it would get better. As he walked, his eyesight started becoming fuzzy and he couldn't see where he was going. That's when he bumped right into Captain Janeway as she was on her way to the Bridge. "Whoa, easy Lieutenant. I wasn't aware that Neelix procured any alcohol recently." She joked with Jones as she grabbed on to his shoulders. "Uh, I'm sorry Captain.” he said as he continued rubbing his forehead. “I'm.. not feeling too well. I was trying to get back to my quarters, but I think I might need to go to sickbay. My head is killing me and I can't see where I'm going." Jones explained. Grabbing him by his arms, Janeway lifted him to his feet. "I got you Lieutenant." she said. "Let's get you to sickbay."
Chapter 4
Lieutenant Torres stood there in front of the probe, struggling with the access panel. Noticing her frustration, Lieutenant Joe Carey approaches her, "Can I help you with that Lieutenant?" "Thanks Carey, but I got it." Torres replied, with mild contempt in her voice. "I understand you don't like me because you think I took your job, but there is no reason for you to undermine my authority or call my competency into question at every turn. I wish you could accept that. Or will you need me to ask Janeway to transfer you to nacelle scrubbing duty?" Flustered and taken aback, Carey apologized. "I, I'm sorry Lieutenant. I meant no disrespect. I accept that the Captain made you Chief Engineer. That decision was based on merit. I was merely asking if I could offer any assistance. It was not my intention to make you look incompetent." Lowering his head slightly, Carey turned as he finished, "I'll go back to engineering. I need to check on the intermix chamber recalibration." Torres turned and called out before Carey could leave the cargo bay, "Joe, I'm... sorry I snapped. Thank you. For offering your assistance." "You're welcome, Lieutenant." Carey replied, with a slight smile on his face as he turn and left. Focusing her attention back on the probe, Torres realizes the filth on the casing has hardened over the access panel. "Ensign Daroz. Can you come over here with a tricorder and tell me what this junk is?" The young Bolian quickly dropped what he was working on and charged right over, scanning the probe barely after getting in range. Daroz scanned the probe for only a few seconds when Torres got impatient, "Well? What is it?" Daroz replied, "I'm sorry Lieutenant. I'm having trouble identifying the material. I'm getting conflicting readings. One second I’m reading life signs like bacteria, then the next second it's an unidentified chemical compound." "Well it can't possibly be bacteria. The transporter's bio-filter should have picked it up." she remarked. “You're readings must be off.” “The readings are spot on Lieutenant,” Ensign Daroz replied. "Could it be possible that it was showing as bacteria when it was scanned? What if it went through the pattern buffer as a chemical compound, like how it is now. There's no telling what this stuff is." Intrigued, Torres replied, “Well Ensign, why don't you go find out?”
Chapter 5
The Sickbay door whooshed open just like all the other times it has done so, so The Doctor didn't pay any more attention to whomever it was than he normally would. He was just a little preoccupied by the tests he was running on samples of the Phage that he procured from the Vidiians when they provided their extensive medical knowledge to save Neelix's life after they stole his lungs. So it was Kes that had the opportunity to greet Janeway as she carried the young Lieutenant into Sick Bay, who could no longer walk on his own. “Captain, what happened?” Kes asked as she hurried over to help ease the burden. Struggling, even with Kes's help, they both managed to get Lt. Jones to the nearest open bio-bed. “Doctor?” Kes called out. “We need you out here!” She exclaimed. “What seems to be the problem Kes?” The Doctor asked before he turned the corner from his office. As he turned, he saw Kes, the Captain, and Lt. Jones lumbering to a bio-bed. Rushing over he asked what happened. Coughing and straining for breath as The Doctor began scanning Lieutenant Jones, Janeway began explaining how she ran into Lieutenant Jones in the corridor and when it was clear he needed medical treatment, she brought him to Sick Bay. “He was complaining of blurry vision, but he also had a bad cough. Right as we got here he started wheezing.” Janeway said as the Doctor finished his scan. “Kes, get me 10 cc's of Pulmozine. His alveola don't appear to be processing oxygen that well.” Looking down at his patient, the Doctor tried as best he could to triage. “Lieutenant, can you hear me? How is your vision? Do you have any nausea, muscle stiffness, cramps?” Lt. Jones didn't answer. All he could do was let out a mild groan. As he lay there, prostrated by some mysterious affliction, Kes leaned in and gave the Pulmozine injection. Far from having the desired effect, it did the opposite. Jones's lungs began to seize and his body started to tremble. “Quick Kes!, I need 25 cc's of Asinolyathin for the spasms and 50 cc's of Lectrazine to stabilize his heart.” The Doctor exclaimed. “I've got it right here Doctor.” Kes stated, proud of her training coming through in a pinch. The Doctor injected Lt. Jones and was fortunate enough to bring his vitals back into the safe zone. “Ok, he's stable for now, but I'm listing him as critical.” He said out loud to Kes and the Captain. “Now we need to figure out what's going on.” Peering over to Janeway, who is sitting on the next bio-bed hunched over, he asks, “Captain, are you all right?” “I'm glad he's stable Doctor. Now, would you mind taking a look at me?” Janeway asks as she continues forward and lands face first on the Sickbay floor.
Chapter 6
The engineering team working on the intermix chamber could feel Lt. Carey's presence as he hovered above them, watching what they were doing. “What's the status Crewman Bendera?” Carey asked. Sounding a little upset at the intrusion, he curtly replied, “We're almost done realigning the dilithium crystals per Lt. Torres' specifications. Five more minutes and we should complete the diagnostic.” When he got no response from Carey, Bendera turned around to see Carey grab the side of his head as he fell down to the floor. Bendera raced to the prostrate Carey, turning him over onto his back. “Lieutenant, are you alright?” he asked. Letting out only a grunt, Carey pushed Bendera out of the way, knocking him over in the process. “Carey! Joe, what are you doing?” Bendera implored as he struggled to get back on his feet. Carey's answer came in the form of a shuffled step as he clumsily raised his arm. Swinging his arm down, he crashed his fist against Bendera's shoulder, dislocating it and sending him to the floor in pain. From behind him, one of Carey's subordinates stunned him with a well placed phaser blast to the back. The rest of the Engineering team rushed over to the two wounded men. Tapping his communicator, Crewman Dalby said, “Dalby to Tuvok.” “Tuvok here.” the Lieutenants voice said. “Lieutenant, I think you better get a security team down to Engineering. Lieutenant Carey just attacked Bendera. Carey was stunned, but we don't know how long he'll be out.” Dalby explained. “Understood. Security teams are on their way.” Tuvok replied. Looking over at Dalby, Ensign Ashmore stated with a slight sound of concern in her voice, “We need to get them down to Sickbay.” Dalby asked, “What made the Lieutenant act like this?” “I don't know,” Ashmore replied. “But I hope the Doctor can figure it out.” A security team arrived to survey the damage and to help Ashmore and Dalby take Carey and Bendera down to Sickbay.
Chapter 7
Torres eagerly picked up the nearest heavy tool from her tool box, and began beating the probes casing profusely. As she began winding down from a sore arm, she noticed that she chipped a few pieces off right by the access panel. She let the tool fall to the floor with such a loud clank that Daroz jumped and flung his tricorder over his head. “My goodness Lieutenant!” Daroz exclaimed as he bent over to pick up his equipment. “Sorry Ensign. I'm just so frustrated with this thing. But, I think I made a dent in it.” She said. Motioning for him to come over, she continued, “Look here. I chipped a few pieces off. And, I think I can get it open, which is a good thing. I was getting close to just beaming this thing off the ship and telling Janeway to launch a new one.' Daroz went over to the storage locker and picked up a few specimen containers. As he leans down to pick the chips up off the floor, he says to Toress, “I hope this is enough to test.” “I'm pretty sure it will. It'll have to be. I'm getting too tired to beat it for another five minutes just for one more piece to chip off.” she said. Daroz put each piece into its own container while Torres began working on the access panel. Just as he was putting the cover on the last container, the access panel flung off and struck him in the head. A small slice appeared on his forehead and a blue stream of blood came out. Torres said apologetically, “Ensign, I'm so sorry. Are you hurt?” Touching the wound and trying to survey the damage, he acknowledged that he was ok. “I guess since I'm going to Sickbay now then I'll get these samples down there too so the Doctor can analyze them.”
Chapter 8
Commander Chakotay sat at the Captain's chair reading the daily report on his PADD when he got a call from Kes. “Kes to Chakotay.” she said. Puzzled, Chakotay responded, “Chakotay here. How can I help you Kes?” “Sir, Captain Janeway just brought Lieutenant Jones into Sickbay, and while we were treating him, she collapsed.” Kes explained. Chakotay began to show concern on his face as the rest of the Bridge crew looked at him. “What is her current status Kes?” Chakotay asked. Detailing Janeway's condition, she replied, “Captian Janeway is sedated at the moment. She appears to be stable but the Doctor is listing her in critical condition. She's showing the same symptoms as Lieutenant Jones.” “Please, keep me posted Kes, and let me know the second her condition changes,” Chakotay ordered. “Chakotay out.” Seizing the moment, Paris spoke up, “First a fight in Engineering, and now the Captain is critical? It doesn't look like this will be a good day.” “Stifle it Lieutenant.” Chakotay barked. “Those kind of comments might have been standard conversation pieces back in the penal colony, but they aren't welcome on this bridge.” Feeling dejected, Paris turned back to his terminal as he apologized, “My apologies Commander.”
Chapter 9
The Doctor stood by Janeway as she lay listless on the bio-bed, staring at the readings coming up on the screen. “Kes, how is our other patient doing?” The Doctor asked over his shoulder. “Jones's blood pressure is a little high, 140 over 90, pulse is at 65 beats per minute.” Kes said matter of factly. “He still appears to be stable right now, Doctor.” “Very good Kes.” He replied as the Sickbay doors opened. Ensign Daroz walked in with the samples in one hand and the other on his head. “Doctor, I need a little help here,” he said. “I'm a little too busy to look at some random samples, Ensign. Please, take a number.” The Doctor retorted. Taking his hand off of his head, Daroz replied, “Well, do you have time for this?” The Doctor looked back at the Ensign and realized he jumped to conclusions. “Please, take a seat over there,” he said as he pointed to an open bio-bed. Walking over to Daroz, The Doctor asked, “So what happened Ensign?” Letting out a little chuckle, Daroz replied, “Lieutenant Torres. “I see,” The Doctor said. “Well, let's get you patched up before you bleed out.”
Chapter 10
“Neelix to Tuvok.” came Neelix's voice over the communication system. Sounding annoyed at the intrusion, Tuvok replied, “What is it Mr. Neelix?” “Um, well, I think we need some of your security people in the mess hall.” Neelix explained. “Some of the crew members just started attacking people.” In his usual serious tone, Tuvok replied, “Understood Mr. Neelix. I'm on my way.” Tuvok stepped down from his console and pressed his communicator. “Tuvok to Security Team 3. Meet me in the Mess Hall. There is some sort of altercation.” he said as he turned to Commander Chakotay. “Commander, if you don't mind, I'd prefer to see what is going on with my own eyes.” Acknowledging the request, Chakotay replied, “Understood Lieutenant. Please keep me posted.” “Very well Commander,” Tuvok replied as he headed to the turbolift doors. Paris sat at his console, shifting in his seat. As he started looking around at the rest of the Bridge crew, Chakotay caught his eye. “Is something wrong Mr. Paris?” Chakotay asked. “I'm not really sure Commander.” He replied. Halting before he spoke again, Chakotay took the opportunity to pry for more information. “Go ahead Tom.” He said. “What's on your mind?” Paris continued, a little embarrassed, “Well, sir, how versed are you in late 20th century entertainment?” Not at all amused, Chakotay asked, “Is there a point to this?” “Well, you're going to think this is ridiculous, but there used to be a genre of motion pictures, called 'Horror'. You know, stories that were meant cause extreme fear,” he explained. “A sub-genre of these films was something called a 'zombie' movie. They're about the dead coming back to life to eat the living.” he continued. Stopping him at this point, Chakotay asked, “Seriously, is there a point to all of this?” “I was just thinking that these attacks reminded me of those stories,” Paris said as he turned back to his console. Chiming in to the conversation, Ensign Kim remarked, “Well, if that's what's going on here, then those motion pictures don't sound too scary to me.” Not looking up from his console, Paris replied, “If that's what you think Harry, then how about tonight we watch one of the classics? I think, 'Night of the Living Dead' would be right up your alley.” “I might be up for that” Kim replied. “It's a good thing the Doctor is a hologram. I don't think zombies would be interested in eating his photons.” Kim joked, with a little laugh. Seeing a spot to end the conversation, Chakotay spoke up, “If you feel that way Harry, might I suggest you head down to Sickbay and see if you can lend a hand?” Even though Harry was not happy with being volunteered for this task, he obliged, “Yes Commander,” then he headed over to the turbolift doors.
Chapter 11
The Doctor sat in his lab staring through the microscope at the blood samples from the Captain and from Jones. The Doctor began sliding between the microscope and another computer station comparing results. “Interesting,” the Doctor said to himself. “Kes, come here and tell me what you can see.” Calling over to the Doctor, Kes replied, “Just one minute Doctor. I need to finish up with the Captain.” The Doctor went over to the spectrometer to begin an analysis on the samples that Daroz brought him. Kes finished up her exam of Janeway and headed over to the the Doctor's science lab. “What did you want me to look at Doctor?” Kes asked. “Kes, look at the sample under the microscope and tell me what you see.” he directed. Kes leaned in and scrutinized the sample for a few minutes. “Doctor, I see something abnormal in the sample, but I don't know what it is.” she said inquisitively. “What is it?” she asked. “That my dear, is an I don't know.” he said jokingly. “I can't determine what this thing is. I'm having the computer analyze it, but who knows how long it will take.” Kes and the Doctor began hearing a low groaning coming from around the corner. Kes was the first one out of the science lab and as she turned the corner she ran right into Lieutenant Jones's hands grabbing her shoulders as his head started leaning in to her neck. The Doctor was right behind her with a hypospray readily in hand. Before Jones could bite Kes on her neck, the Doctor reached out and sedated Jones. “Kes, help me get him over here so we can get him behind a stasis field.” the Doctor said. As soon as they laid Jones down on the bio-bed, the Sickbay doors whooshed open and the security team brought Carey and Bendera in. “Doctor, Carey attacked Bendera. Where do you want us to put him?” the security team asked. “Another one?” the Doctor asked. “Just find an empty bed and lay him down. Kes, examine him please.” “Yes Doctor,” Kes replied. “Do you want me to check out Bendera's arm or would you like to?” she asked when she saw Bendera holding his arm and wincing in pain. “I'll do it Kes, just make sure you get a full workup done and take it to the lab.” the Doctor replied. “What I'm wondering is, why do I have only Human patients affected?” the Doctor said to himself. Suddenly, Janeway started waking up. She stumbled off the bed, then staggered over to one of the security team members. As Janeway began reaching for the security team, the Doctor was right behind her with another hypospray and sedated her before she could place a hand on anyone. The Doctor and the security team moved Janeway to the stasis room along with Jones. “Kes, once you get the samples and verify that Carey is stable, have him moved to the stasis room with the Captain and Jones.” the Doctor ordered. “Yes Doctor.” Kes replied.
Chapter 12
Lieutenant Torres walked into Engineering with the probes data recorder in hand. As she walk over to a terminal to connect the data recorder, she called out for Carey. “Lieutenant Carey, what's the status of the warp core?” she asked into the air, and getting no response. “Carey!” she yelled. Crewman Dalby came running over. Looking a little confused, Torres asked, “Crewman Dalby, where is Lieutenant Carey? “Lieutenant, there was, an incident,” Dalby explained. “We were finishing up the crystal realignment, when Lieutenant Carey attacked Crewman Bendera.” “He did what?” Torres exclaimed, looking dumbfounded. “We don't understand it either Lieutenant. One moment he was asking for an update, and the next minute he started attacking Bendera.” he said. “We stunned him, called Security, and took Carey and Bendera down to Sickbay.” “Why wasn't I informed about this? I AM Chief Engineer.” she sternly reminded him. “You're right Lieutenant. I'm sorry. I was so nervous and we were trying to get Security down here and take everyone down to Sickbay.” Dalby apologized. “Alright, so how are we on the warp core?” She asked. “Everything is completed and we are running at 98% efficiency.” Dalby boasted. “Very well Dalby. Now, what I want you to do is analyze the probe's data recorded and figure out why it crashed.” She ordered.” Dalby acknowledged the order, “Yes Lieutenant”. “Dalby, I'm going to Sickbay to check on the status of my engineers. If anything else exciting happens, please let me know.” Torres said as she started to walk away. “Yes Lieutenant.” Dalby replied as she walked out of Engineering.
Chapter 13
Once again, the Sickbay doors whooshed open. The Doctor was too busy with his samples to see that it was Harry Kim walking in. “Now who's sick?” the Doctor asked as he left his lab. “Uh, it's just me Doctor.” Kim replied as he walked over to the Doctor. “Commander Chakotay requested I come down to lend a hand, since you're pretty busy.” “I doubt you could be of any use to me here Ensign.” The Doctor said as he turned back around to return to his lab. “You have no formal medical training. But under the circumstances, I think you might be able to do some good.” he said as Kim followed him into the lab. Indicating an open station, the Doctor motioned for Kim to take a seat. “Ensign Daroz brought some samples from a material that were covering the recovered probe. Since I'm busy with a medical mystery, feel free to analyze the substance.” The sound of instant boredom could be detected in Kim's reply, “Very well Doctor. I'm glad I can help.” The Doctor decided to check on his patients, but as he started walking out of the lab, the computer beeped, alerting him that the analysis is completed. As he sat down at the terminal, he was in instant shock. “No, this can't be right.” he said out loud. “Computer, please confirm your analysis.” The computer's voice was direct and methodical. “Analysis confirms symptoms are similar to Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in Human physiology.” As the Doctor sat baffled, an alarm went off in Sickbay. “Doctor!” Kes yelled. The Doctor ran out of the lab to witness Lieutenant Jones seizing on the floor of the stasis room as Captain Janeway and Lieutenant Carey began stumbling into the force field. The Doctor ran over to a terminal and had Jones beamed from the stasis room to an open bio-bed. He immediately activated a stasis field over Jones, but by the time he got over to the bio-bed, Jones had died. As the Doctor turned to go to his office to record the event, Kim came out of the lab. “Doctor, I've confirmed that the samples show signs of being biological, but I can't find anything further. Should I summon Ensign Wildman to take a look? She's a xeno-biologist.” Appearing to be saddened over the death of Jones, the Doctor calmly replied, “Go ahead Lieutenant. We need all the help we can get.”
Chapter 14
Lieutenant Tuvok is standing at his console when he gets a call from the holodeck asking for help. “Tuvok to Security Team 2. I need you to split up, one group head to the Mess Hall, and the rest report to the holodeck. We have more reports of crew members attacking each other.” More reports of attacks continue to pour in through the comm system and directly to his terminal. “Commander, I'm running out of security teams.” Tuvok said. What do you want me to do?” “Not to worry Tuvok, I have an idea.” Chakotay said reassuringly. Chakotay calls down to Engineering. “Chakotay to Torres.” “Torres here, Commander.” she replied. “B'Elanna, I want you to create a holodeck simulation of a giant sickbay. I want to be able to house everyone affected by this so called 'zombie virus'.” Chakotay explained. “I think I can have it running in a few minutes Commander.” B'Elanna replied. Chakotay continued his instructions. “Let me know as soon as you have it running. I want to beam each victim there, then transfer the Doctor's program to the holodeck so he has access to all of his patients.” “As you wish Chakotay,” she said, sounding a little overwhelmed. Turning to Tuvok, Chakotay ordered, “Tuvok, begin having your security teams coordinate the beaming of all the identified sick to the holodeck.” “Yes, Commander.” Tuvok replied as he focused on his terminal to work out the logistics. Focusing on the last part of his plan, Chakotay called down to Sickbay. “Chakotay to Sickbay.” “Yes Commander?” The Doctor asked. “Doctor, I'm having B'Elanna create a Sickbay on the holodeck so you can work with everyone that seems to be affected by this virus. Once it's running, Lieutenant Tuvok will have everyone beamed to the holodeck, and B'Elanna will transfer your program.” Sounding a little amused by the whimsy in the plan, the Doctor replied, “That sounds very interesting.” “I'll keep you posted. Chakotay out.”
Chapter 15
Ensign Kim and the Doctor both hovered over Ensign Samantha Wildman as she was running tests on the samples that Daroz brought from the probe. The Doctor began sounding very impatient when he says to Wildman, “Well Ensign? Any progress?” “At the present moment, I can confirm that it is biological in nature. The structure seems to be virulent.” Wildman explained. “Well that explains a lot.” The Doctor replied. Continuing the analysis, “But that doesn't explain why it's also a mineral. It looks similar in structure to the amphibole mineral family.” “So, to hypothesize,” the Doctor said out loud, “This 'compound', shall we call it, could be awakening some retrovirus in the Human DNA structure which is causing this hysteria.” Sounding a little confused, Ensign Kim replies, “I don't get it Doc. If we were cured of something hundreds of years ago, how can we get it again? The Doctor explained, “Mister Kim, the only way a genetic sequence can ever be killed, is to eliminate it completely from the genome. “I bet you didn't know that the genetic code, the stuff that actually makes you what you are, takes up only about two percent of your overall genetic code. The rest of the genes you're carrying around in your body right now, is essentially the history of your species.” Harry looked at the Doctor, nodded, then asked, “So how does that help me?” Harry began holding his forehead as he felt around for an empty seat. “I really think you should hurry up with finding a cure Doctor. I think I'm coming down with it as well.” The Doctor called for Kes to help Harry over to a bio-bed. “After you run the tests on Mr. Kim, please check on the rest of our patients.” “Yes Doctor.” Kes replied. The Doctor returned to his terminal. “Computer, scan the current sample for any abnormal protein structures. I believe we should be looking for a prion.” “Working.” The computer chimed back. The Doctor turned to Ensign Wildman to have her continue with her analysis. As he called over to her, he saw her slumped over in her chair. “Great, another one. Computer, you better hurry.” The Doctor took Ensign Wildman over to the last available bio-bed and began running the tests that have become standard today. He gave Wildman a hypospray injection to keep her sedated. As he walked back to the lab, he noticed the computer had finished the query. “Analysis completed.” The computer announced. The Doctor sat back down at the terminal. “Display results” he commanded. The display lit up with the results of the analysis. On the screen appeared an unidentified variant of the Cruetzfeld-Jakob disease protein. “Kes.” The Doctor announced. Kes came running into the lab. “Yes Doctor?” “I've identified the cause. It's a new variant of an old Earth disease that was cured over 200 years ago.” The Doctor said. “That's wonderful Doctor. Do you think you can find a way to treat it?” She asked. With a voice full of confidence, the Doctor replied, “I believe I can. If we follow the same path to treating the old disease, we should be able to find a way to cure this variant.” “Do you need me to do anything to help?” Kes asked. “I should be able to synthesize a treatment. I want you to get Lieutenant Carey ready to test a solution that the computer is designing now, based on the original.” The Doctor ordered. Without another word, Kes left the lab and went over to the stasis room to retrieve Carey. After she put him on a bio-bed, Kes went back to get the Doctor. He walked over to Lieutenant Carey with a hypospray in hand. “Kes, please monitor the Lieutenant's vital signs while I administer the drug.” The Doctor instructed. The Doctor put the hypospray up to Carey's neck and injected him with the medicine. Within seconds he reacted to the drug. “Doctor, Carey's vital signs appear to be returning to normal. Blood pressure, heart rate, brain activity. They all show signs of healthy functioning. “Excellent Kes.” The Doctor replied. “Please, go into the lab and have the computer synthesize five more doses for the rest of our patients in here.” Lieutenant Carey started waking up from his sedation. The Doctor deactivated the stasis field over the bio-bed. Lieutenant Carey wasted no time trying to sit up. “Doctor, what happened? How did I get to Sickbay?” Carey asked. “Relax Lieutenant. It's a long story. But not to worry, you had the best medical treatment Starfleet has to offer in this quadrant.” The Doctor jokingly replied. Kes came back from the lab with the five requested hyposprays. They each went through Sickbay injecting Captain Janeway, Ensigns Kim and Wildman, and the others. All of the Doctor's patients immediately began stabilizing on their own, sitting up, and talking.
Chapter 16
“Sickbay to Chakotay.” The Doctor calls over the comm system. “Go ahead Doctor, I hope you have something. This ship is falling apart.” Chakotay said. “I have good news and I have bad news.” The Doctor said. “I'll bite,” Chakotay said jokingly. “give me the bad news first.” “The bad news is, contrary to Mr. Paris's hypothesis, we do not have a ship full of zombies,” he said. “That's good Doctor,” Chakotay replied. “So what's the good news?” Chakotay asked. Sounding quite proud of himself, the Doctor explained, “Well, I've synthesized an antidote and successfully tested it on Lieutenant Carey, Captain Janeway, and Ensigns Kim and Wildman. Sounding relived, Chakotay said, “That's wonderful news Doctor. Now how do we get it to everyone else?” he asked. “I believe we can disperse it through the ventilation system for maximum effect. It's safe for everyone to absorb so we should do it as soon as possible before the disease continues to spread.” the Doctor explained. “Very well Doctor.” Chakotay said. “Focus on your patients in the holodeck first, then flood the rest of the ship. I'll have security sweep the ship to make sure we haven't missed anyone. Get it done.” “Yes Commander,” the Doctor said. Chakotay turned to Tuvok. “Lieutenant, once the Doctor releases the antidote, have all available security teams scour the ship deck by deck searching for anyone that we've missed. Escort everyone to the holodeck sickbay for examination.” “Yes Commander,” Tuvok replied.
Chapter 17
Janeway sat behind her desk in her ready room, sipping coffee from her favorite cup as Chakotay finished his briefing. “Fortunately, there were only two fatalities. Ensign Toomey and Lieutenant Jones.” Chakotay reported. Saddened by the loss of two crew members, Janeway replied. “I hate losing people, especially being so far from home.” “Agreed.” Chakotay said. “What did we find out about the probe?” Janeway asked, continuing the briefing. “The probe hit a magnetic disturbance which caused it to crash. It turns out the planet's magnetic field isn't stable. Ensign Kim estimates that the field will collapse within the next fifty to sixty years.” Chakotay explained. Intrigued, Janeway replied, “That's pretty interesting.” “We've also been tracking a Class II comet.” He said. Feigning interest, Janeway replies, “Wow, looks like I missed a lot.” As she lowered her coffee cup back down to her desk to pick up a PADD, she jokingly retorted, “How ever did you manage to not let the ship fall apart?” Chakotay replied, with a small smile on his face, “I have a really good teacher.” The chime at the door broke the reverie. “Enter,” Janeway said. Paris poked his head in. “Sorry to bother you Captain. I'm putting together a little entertainment in light of today's events.” he said. “And what would that be Lieutenant?” Janeway asked. “It's an old Earth form of entertainment called a motion picture. I've scheduled a showing of a horror classic called 'Night of the Living Dead'.” Looking a little disgusted at the sound of it, Janeway replied, “I think I'll sit this one out Tom. The Doctor said I should take it easy for a few days.” “Very well Captain. Commander, should I save you a seat?” he asked. “Sorry Tom. I have the 'graveyard shift'. Excuse the pun.” Chakotay replied with a wide smile on his face. Paris left the ready room while Chakotay turned back to Janeway. “I guess I just volunteered for the night shift, didn't I?” Chakotay asked. “I guess you did Commander,” Janeway remarked as she took a sip of coffee and put down her cup. “I guess you did.”
