by Lance Hartcort and Azalea Adams
81202.20
Hours after Complications
-=Orphanage at the Monastery at Altaan, Bajor=-
81202.20
Hours after Complications
-=Orphanage at the Monastery at Altaan, Bajor=-
Lance looked at the blood sample through the field electron microscope that he had setup in a tent in the courtyard of the orphanage. He could see the white blood cells floating around the red cells in the sample. Also evident were long grey black cells that seemed to be attacking the white cells at an alarming rate. They attached themselves to the cell and with in a few moment mutated the white cell into a clone of the attacker.
“Aggressive.” He murmured.
The tent housed the mobile medical lab and triage center that they had brought with them from the Sera. Equipped with scaled down and portable diagnostic, surgical, and emergency medical equipment it was a Sickbay away from home.
It was a sterile environment with biologically sealed sections for infectious patients, and currently every available one was occupied with sick children and adults.
He shook his head as his pulled his eyes away from the view piece and scribbled a note onto the PADD unit next to him. He grabbed a vial from a rack of vials nearby and reading the label took note of the number written on it, adding it to his notes.
Popping the lid off he took a small sample with a pipette and dropped it carefully onto the blood sample under the microscope. He then looked back into the eyepiece.
He saw the new white cells that he had added begin to do their job and attack the invading cells as well as the mutated white cells. They seemed to be doing their job wiping out the invading virus. In a few moments it was all over, the virus had been destroyed.
He pulled away from the scope and frowned. He scribbled some more notes onto the PADD.
“How’s it going?” Dr. Adams’ weary voice came from behind him.
Lance rubbed his eyes and nodded towards the microscope. “See for yourself.”
Azalea walked over and peered through the scope.
“They look like healthy white and red cells.” She concluded, rubbing the back of her neck with her hand.
Lance leaned up against the lab table next to her. “They are now. It was infected. I used DNA from the mutated white cells from that sample and infused them into the white cells from the blood sample I took from the Vedek.”
Azalea looked up from the scope. “So you tailored the white cells with antibodies from this host with DNA specific strands?”
Lance nodded. “Yes, makes for perfect viral assassins.”
"Dr. Hartcort, you're a genius. It looks as though you've found the miracle cure that I've been praying for since the moment we left the Serendipity..." Her voice trailed as Lance held up his hand.
“Not so fast.” He motioned towards the scope.
As Azalea looked back into the eyepiece, Lance grabbed another vial from the rack and withdrew a drop of the contents into a dropper.
“The blood sample you are looking at is from subject 143. The tailored white cells are from subject 143’s own infected white cells DNA. This is the virus extracted from subject 145’s blood sample.”
He added the drop to the sample under the scope.
Immediately the virus began to attack the white cells in the previously ‘cured’ blood sample from subject 143. In a few moments the virus had almost wiped out the white cells.
"So you think we're looking at multiple strains of the same virus? That's why it's spreading to those who have even had immunity because they had it when they were children- because the virus itself has mutated?"
Lance nodded and shook his finger at the microscope. “Not just mutated, but mutated to the individual it is infecting.” He started to pace. “We are talking about literally thousands, millions, of possible strains of a virus existing at the same time.
“Then it attacks the white cell of the host. Lowering immunity to common sicknesses.” He nodded to the sick people in the tent. “Most of these children are sick from common ailments.” He counted on his fingers. “Flu, stomach virus, common colds, et cetera, et cetera. But this virus has weakened them so far that their bodies can’t fight them off.”
Suddenly, Azalea wished there was a chair nearby to sit down in. She felt lightheaded just considering what Hartcort was suggesting. "Altered immune response? This is bad."
“This bug is smart. If we come up with a tailored antibody it obviously will work.” He nodded to the scope again. “But only for that person with that strain and there is no guarantee that they will not be re-infected by another strain.” He shook his head. “This is NOT the fever that we thought it was, not any more. This is a whole new virus.”
"Then we are in a whole lot of trouble." Azalea's breath escaped her lips in a slow, deep sigh. "How could this happen?"
“I will tell you one thing, it is the perfect bug.” He looked straight at her. “Too perfect.” He paused, hating with every fiber of his being what he had to tell her next. "I think that someone introduced this new strain into the population via the vaccine..." his words faded.
Azalea blinked several times as she tried to accept what he was proposing. "Intentionally?"
"Well, it would take a breakdown of every modern safety protocol in place for it to happen unintentionally. And I just don't know how plausible that is."
"It's more plausible to think that someone wanted to wipe out a large population of people on their own planet and make it look like an unfortunate accident?"
"Wouldn't be the first time." Lance replied, his voice heavy with concern.
"Ugh." Azalia put her hand to her forehead and sighed. "We really have to go in this direction?"
"I don't see any other choice. But whether or not we can prove that someone did this intentionally and sent the mutated virus to the Plains I can't say. It should be easy enough though to see if the vaccine itself truly is tainted, all we need to do is get our hands on a sample that was meant to go to another Province. The wealthier the Province, the better."
*There are only one or two Provinces on Bajor that can boast any kind of wealth,* Azalea thought, *and they were where the major Vedek Assemblies were located.*
"I'll speak to our friend the Vedek Jariel," She announced, "He seems to have some powerful connections. Hopefully he can score us another vaccine sample to cross check."
"I'd be very careful about who I mention any of this to- be sure he knows that." Lance added.
"Understood." Azalea knew that if someone, especially someone in the government was so heartless that they would inflict such suffering on innocent children, then they would have no compunction at all about disposing of two meddling, alien Starfleet doctors.
“Also,” Lance added, “we need to make sure no one leaves here. We need to quarantine this here and now, if this were to spread to a major population center.” He let his words end knowing his did not need to go into detail with his fellow doctor.
"But the Plains..." she mumbled, feeling nauseated as she realized just how bad this outbreak had the potential to get. "It has already been introduced there. Unless we can come up with some sort of workable treatment," her head fell into her hands. "Dr. Hartcort, we may be looking at a disaster of unthinkable proportions."
Another thought occurred to her suddenly, and her complexion took on an ashen tone. "Doctor, if the virus is that mutated, what stops it from jumping from Bajoran DNA to Human?"
"In my estimation?" Lance admitted nervously, "Absolutely nothing except luck and Divine intervention."
Commander Lance Hartcort
CMO USS Revolution
Currently on Bajor
and
Commander Azalea Adams
Starfleet Medical
Currently on Bajor
NRPG: AMAZING work, Doctor Hartcort...you sure did the heavy lifting on this one and I am much obliged. Bravo! ~ZL
CMO USS Revolution
Currently on Bajor
and
Commander Azalea Adams
Starfleet Medical
Currently on Bajor
NRPG: AMAZING work, Doctor Hartcort...you sure did the heavy lifting on this one and I am much obliged. Bravo! ~ZL