<USS Avalon> Bump in the Night

"Bump in the Night"
Joint Log by
Lieutenant Junior Grade T'Leara
Bioscience Officer
&
Lieutenant First Class Isaac  Mahler
Chief Medical Officer
USS Avalon NCC-27926-C
 
    It was night on the Avalon but Dr. Isaac Mahler  wasn't asleep. Far from 
it, he was still working over formulae and just trying  to find a way to work 
the nervous tension out of his system. He stopped,  shook his head and got up. 
Enough, he thought, I'm out of here,  and he left Sickbay to just wander a 
bit.
 
    For the second time in less than an hour, T'Leara  found herself very 
nearly running into someone as she hurried up the hall toward  sickbay. 
Stopping 
just short of actual collision, she apologized quickly,  cradling her mangled 
hand close to her. "Excuse me, sir."
 
    Mahler stopped as well, eyeing the newcomer the way  any Doctor would. 
"One moment ... let me see your hand. Are you hurt?" Of course  he knew there 
was something wrong with whomever it was but he wanted to  sound as reassuring 
as he could.
 
    "An accident," she answered, holding out the hand  for his inspection. 
The hypospray she'd taken had dulled the throbbing somewhat,  but the hand was 
now swollen to nearly double its original size. The dual rows  of puncture 
wounds on both front and back of it stood out starkly against the  overly 
stretched skin.
 
    "Come with me," replied Mahler. "I'm the Chief  Medical Officer and we 
should have you treated in Sickbay." He took hold of her  other hand and gently 
escorted her in that direction. "An accident? What  happened?" he asked as the 
doors to Sickbay hissed open.
 
    "George," T'Leara answered simply, as if that one  word explained 
everything. She was beginning to feel slightly buzzed, and  wondered if it 
might be 
an effect of the hypo. George wasn't venomous, was  he?
 
    "Up here, please," Mahler said politely, gesturing  to a biobed. "George? 
Did this ... George attack you?" He began to wonder just  what she was 
talking about. He opened his medical tricorder and began scanning  her hand.
 
    "Not precisely," T'Leara responded, trying to keep  her thoughts in 
order. "I failed to feed him in a timely manner. He hungered.  When at last I 
presented him with his food, he was...overzealous? It was an  accident. Nothing 
more." She took a slow deep breath as she tried to remember  what specific 
genetic splicings she'd done when altering George.
 
    "Hmm ... sounds like this 'George' isn't a person.  A pet?"
 
    "Of sorts," T'Leara confirmed, her speech slurring  slightly in spite of 
her best efforts.
 
    Mahler injected her with Tri-Ox and looked at her  vitals. "Sounds like 
an unusual one to have," he remarked. He added a hypospray  of adrenaline and 
nitroglycerine, having carefully adjusted the levels and  looking at the biobed 
monitors.
 
    "Indeed. Quite unique," T'Leara responded, her mind  wandering 
unnaturally. "No flies. Or pests. They are quite controlled."
 
    "A carnivorous plant," Mahler said. "Pitcher plant,  Venus's flytrap, 
something like that?" He thought of the African strangler  plant, 'Cleopatra,' 
from an old television show.
 
    T'Leara nodded. "Altered somewhat, but yes.  Primarily Venus Flytrap." 
She exhaled slowly, as if she'd been waiting for him  to catch on.
 
    Mahler nodded. "One moment." He filled another  hypospray with medicine 
he knew would counteract the poison in a plant like that  and slowly injected 
it. "Now. This will take a while ... hopefully not *too*  long." Come on, come 
on, he thought as he looked at the vital signs,  let's see some results! And 
slowly, bit by bit, the signs began returning  to normal. "Take it easy," he 
said. "You're going to need to rest some. I have  to make sure you're fit to be 
released first."
 
    "Fit to...Sir?" T'Leara asked, less confused than  she had been a moment 
before, but still not quite certain of his meaning. "I'm  meant to be on duty, 
Sir." She drew a slow, deep breath, relieved though she'd  never show it to 
find the fog lifting and her mind.
 
    "I'll just let your station know you're here and  need to recover from 
this," Mahler replied. "You were slipping away there and  it's lucky I 
discovered who or what 'George' was and could administer the right  medicine or 
I'd 
have lost you." He smiled. "What station should I inform?"
 
    "Bioscience," T'Leara answered, considering  carefully what he'd said. 
"Mr. Jackson agreed to inform them that I would be  delayed, however further 
contact might be prudent. Thank you, Sir."
 
    "Most welcome," Mahler replied, picking up a PADD  and making a quick 
note. "I'll be right back." He stepped away and commed the  Bioscience station, 
informing them that one of their officers had been taken ill  and was in 
Sickbay. He stepped back. "No need to worry now," he said. "As I said  ... just 
get 
some rest."
 
    T'Leara lay back on the biobed obediently, her mind  on the unfinished 
work she had in her lab. "Sir?"
 
    Mahler looked back as he was stepping away. "Yes?"  She seems anxious to 
get back to work ... how am I going to hold her  here? he wondered.
 
    "If I am to be delayed overlong, would it be  possible to have someone 
attend to the small cuttings in the back of my  lab?  It's past feeding time."
 
    Mahler nodded. "But of course." He commed  Bioscience. "Mahler here ... 
it seems a certain 'George' needs feeding promptly;  please make sure the plant 
gets its nourishment as quickly as possible." "Yes,  Doctor," came a voice at 
the other end. He nodded at his patient. "And there you  go," he said. 
"Hopefully you won't be detained for very long here."
 
    Relaxing visibly, T'Leara nodded slightly. "Thank  you, Doctor." Suddenly 
remembering something, she sat up with a start. "Remind  them to throw the 
food...not  hand it off. Otherwise..." she held up her  hand gingerly. "They 
might be...overzealous...as well."
 
    Mahler nodded and touched his commbadge. "Mahler to  Bioscience ... be 
careful in feeding that plant ... the food is to be *thrown,*  not *handed,* to 
the plant. We don't want any further injuries." "Aye, Doctor,"  came the voice 
at the other end. "Well, so far, so good," he said. "Feeling  better?"
 
    "Yes, Sir," T'leara answered, "though they will  find more than one. 
George is my own. In my quarters. The four clippings are  smaller, slightly 
altered versions of him."
 
    Mahler nodded. "All right. At any rate, you just  rest now. I think you 
may have only a few hours before we can release you." He  looked up at the 
vitals. "Just to make sure, you understand."
 
    "Of course, Doctor," T'Leara responded, glancing up  at the biobed 
readouts as well before laying back down and allowing her mind to  return to 
her 
work.
 
    "If you need anything, just let me know." Mahler  slowly walked back to 
his desk and sat down.
 
    Lieutenant Junior Grade T'Leara
    Bioscience Officer
    &
    Lieutenant First Class Isaac Mahler
    Chief Medical Officer
    USS Avalon NCC-27926-C
    Admiral Keith Ketchum, Commanding Officer
    Celestial Prime Sim Group
    Admiral Keith Ketchum,  Commander-in-Chief
**************A Good Credit Score is 700 or Above. See yours in just 2 easy 
steps! 
(http://pr.atwola.com/promoclk/100000075x1215855013x1201028747/aol?redir=http://www.freecreditreport.com/pm/default.aspx?sc=668072%26hmpgID=62%26bcd=De
cemailfooterNO62)

Other related posts: