[USS Vanguard] RPG: Who's Patient Zero?
- From: "Andy W. Ho" <andywoho@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: ncv80221@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Sun, 27 Mar 2005 09:15:03 -0800 (PST)
Captain Dominic Santos
USS Vanguard
After all recent posts
RPG:
The door chime rang out.
"Come in," came the reply.
Chief Engineer Sam McCaw entered the captain's ready room.
"Sam, I'm assuming you came to tell me that you've secured the
Tribble."
"Yes, sir, and sir, it's...dying."
"What makes you think it's dying?"
"It hasn't eaten. It hasn't moved."
"Then Kieran was right. A genetic weapon with no hostile target. And
now it's going to self-destruct. Shame. I would have liked Xristha and
Jazz to study it and report their findings."
"Sir...?!"
"What? I would have insisted that it be treated with the utmost concern
for its safety and well-being."
"I...I...see."
"Well, don't stand there with your mouth open. Let's go have a look at
him/her/it."
Santos and McCaw arrived in sickbay. Dr. Droin noticed the commanding
officer and chief engineer and rose to greet them.
All three huddled around a small examination table surrounded by a
level 1 forcefield.
"How much longer?" Santos asked, peering at the Tribble.
"I can't be more specific, but not much longer now," Droin said,
shaking her head. She placed her hands in the pockets of her surgical
gown.
The trio were silent, until Santos suddenly ordered, "Computer,
deactivate the forcefield in sickbay."
"Captain, I don't..." Droin began. Santos picked up the Tribble and
stroked it.
The Chief Medical Officer threw her hands up in the air. "Why do I
bother?" she asked the sickbay space. "No one ever takes my advice
anyway." She shook her head and crossed her arms, glowering at Santos.
"Don't stare at me like that, Xristha. It's dying, and it's alone..."
"...and it may be carrying infectious diseases and
who-knows-what-else!"
"Did your scans detect anything?"
Xristha stared at Santos without saying anything.
"No," she admitted at last.
"Well, there..."
"Before you say anything else, Commander Darkwater believes this is a
bioweapon. I don't know what it's capable of yet. I would have ejected
it into space, except that Kieran's suspicions aren't enough of a
reason to violate at least ten bylaws in the Federation charter."
Santos gently placed the Tribble back in its dwelling.
"Thank you, Doctor. Carry on."
Santos left sickbay.
Droin and McCaw turned and looked at one another.
Droin said, "Sometimes, even after all these years, I just don't
understand the man."
"I know," McCaw agreed.
Santos returned to his ready room, sat behind his desk and tried to
read the reports sent by Highwaij concerning the Ghormley's logs.
Santos dabbed his forehead and noticed he was sweating a little.
He walked to the replicator and ordered an orange juice with ice, not
usually the way he liked it.
He sipped at his orange juice and read the report.
Santos had just come across an audio recording made by Philip McTeague,
the late Ghormley's security chief, when he found the officer's Scots
accent even more difficult to discern.
To distract himself, he began humming, softly then loudly, "Un Bel Di"
from Puccini's "Madame Butterfly."
Nick Santos finally caught himself. He frowned and asked out loud,
"What's wrong with me?"
But he smiled and shook his head, deciding after all there was nothing
wrong with feeling good. He felt, so good, in fact, he felt like
wandering down to Event Horizon and having a drink. Just a small one at
this time of day.
Santos walked off the bridge without sparing the bridge crew a second
glance. He came within proximity of the science officer on duty and
infected her.
On his way to Event Horizon, he infected 13 crew members and officers.
The number would have been 15, except two had already been infected.
Within the next half hour, the 13 went on to infect 143 more people on
the Vanguard.
The outbreak had begun.
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