Disclosure

Posted on 31 Dec 2016 @ 8:49am by Commander Rhyan & Major Keisha Afton

1,729 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: Errand of Mercy
Location: USS Redemption, Sickbay
Timeline: ED4 0630

The events of the morning had so far left Rhyan frustrated. Not only had the Vulcan learned of Jon Marshall's return to the Redemption, but also his attempts to find a cure for Elesa Zal's affliction had thus far failed miserably. As with the Ee virus and the Hadronus virus, the Zal virus (as he had decided to name it) was an extremely intelligent combination of RNA and proteins. With every attack on the virus, the virus fought back and found a way to counteract any anti-virus he created. Not even Doctor Afton's previous success with creating a counteragent to the Ee virus seemed to touch it.

That was why, after several temper tantrums and the destruction of more than one genome analyser, Rhyan had decided to bring the good doctor into his research. Keisha was the only other person in Starfleet with as much knowledge on the Ee virus as he did. If he needed help, sickbay was the place to go.

As if on cue, Rhyan approached the double doors that swished aside to grant him access to the familiar surroundings of sickbay. Thankfully the space was empty, with the only exception being a solitary figure dressed in the atypical uniform of the Marine Corps. Her long, almost-white locks confirmed to Rhyan that she was the woman he was desperately seeking for advice.

Keisha didn't even stir from her projections as she heard the door open. The nurses or the EMH would get her if she was needed and this was a far more important draw to her attention. The exhaled breath came simultaneously with a quiet curse as pale blue eyes watched the virus spin before her in the direction she had indicated. Prudence dictated that a marine know everything there was to know about 'the enemy'.

"Major," Rhyan announced, calling to his colleague - and friend - from the farthest edge of sickbay. The human did not stir, her eyes directed downwards towards one of the many analysers with sickbay's small laboratory. Sympathising with the Doctor's attention to her research, Rhyan gave a brief thought to just leaving her alone - but the desire to seek help with his cure for Elesa forced him forwards.

Form elsewhere in sickbay the familiar form of Lead Nurse Hank Grey approached the Vulcan. He closed the medical tricorder in has hand as he approached. "Good day Commander. Congratulations on your recent promotion," he said as his finger pointed to the shiny new pip on Rhyan's turtleneck, "what can I help you with?"

Rhyan smirked, still getting used to his recent promotion. "Thank you Hank. I was hoping to speak with the Major if possible? I have an urgent matter to discuss with her about our upcoming mission." It was only a small lie, given that he wanted to discuss the Zal virus rather than the Hadronus virus - but both were so closely linked in his opinion that finding a cure to one was tantamount to finding the cure for the other. Rhyan watched as Nurse Grey gave him a nod and turned to approach Keisha.

"Hello Rhyan," Keisha said without turning from her viral matrix. "You know you don't have to ask my nurses if you can disturb me, you're entitled to just do so. We've been through enough to have that privilege".

"Thank you," he responded, nodding to Nurse Grey and slowly approaching the Major. Rhyan was still getting used to referring to Keisha by her new title, despite having nearly six months to do so. He had never served on board a Marine vessel - thankfully - and was not used to seeing anyone outside of the Marine detachment on a vessel wearing the green-collared uniform of the corps. Why Keisha had persisted with the temporary commission awarded to her during their last mission confused him. That said, some might question why Rhyan clung on to his role as Chief Science Officer despite having two promotions in the short time since be became Executive Officer - so it was not his position to question the Major's motives.

As he reached Keisha's workstation, Rhyan continued. His voice was low, avoiding the possibility of unexpected ears overhearing their conversation. "I need your help Keisha. Unfortunately I also need your utmost discretion should you wish to assist me - but I feel that our ultimate goal could be mutually beneficial to both of us."

He continued to watch her with anticipation.

"I'm listening." Discretion and help could only mean one thing with Rhyan at this moment, and curiosity gnawed at her to find out just what he was up to with this. Curiosity had been her bane in the past, but she couldn't resist the call of knowledge.

The Vulcan stepped closer to his colleague, dropping the sound of his voice even further to avoid being overheard. "The Hadronus virus is not the only new virus to have been discovered by Starfleet medical in the past few weeks. There is another virus currently infecting, and slowly killing, Elesa Zal." Rhyan's voice became almost inaudible as he muttered the President's name. His eyes locked momentarily with Keisha's and he was certain he saw shock and confusion within them.

He didn't allow the doctor a moment to respond. As though a massive weight were slowly lifting off of him, Rhyan continued to detail his recent detour to Paris and the uncomfortable meeting he had with Daniel and Elesa. He explained the nature of the new virus and its striking resemblance to the one that was now ravaging the planet of Hadronus. The more he spoke, the more horrified Keisha appeared in front of him.

"So you see," he continued, now frustrated at himself for taking this long to speak with Keisha, "I cannot seem to find a way to reduce the virulence of the disease, never mind cure it. As you are the only person in Starfleet - perhaps even the whole of the Alpha Quadrant - that understands the Ee virus as much as me, I desperately need your help to save the President’s life."

An icy chill wrapped itself around her spine and she shivered in atavistic response to his words. "The very idea fills me with dread old friend. The potential for infection if the virus is already in Federation Headquarters?" One pale hand pressed to her chest, as she fought for air. Panic made her close her eyes and for a long moment, stretch her senses out to her husband. He was calm, and she absorbed it, trying to keep her anxiety to herself. "Are we going to lose the whole of the Council in one fell swoop?"

Rhyan shook his head in the negative. "No, I do not believe so."

The Vulcan pulled a padd from one of his pockets and handed it to Keisha. She took the device in her hand, thumbed it briefly, and then looked back at Rhyan for an explanation.

"In your hand is the preliminary report I have written on the Zal virus. On page seven you will see my comparative breakdown of the Ee virus, the Zal virus and the Hadronus virus. As you can see from my report, the Ee and Zal viruses are blood-borne in nature. The Hadronus virus, on the other hand, appears to be spread via aerosol contamination. For that reason alone I believe that the rest of the Federation Council - for the moment at least - is safe. If you advance to appendix two you will see that no other members of the Federation Council have tested positive for either virus."

"Yet." Shoving herself roughly away from the table, she paced around the room. Her white hair fluttered around her as she tried to ease her own anxiety. Her hand scrubbed over her face in an effort to show some semblance of control. "She had to have been infected deliberately. Can she be quarantined without setting the whole of the Council into panic and chaos?"

"I don't believe so. President Zal wishes to be discreet. Any sign of weakness at this moment in time would be catastrophic for her ability to keep stability within the Council chambers." Rhyan knew that her enemies would move quickly to depose and replace the President at the first possible opportunity. There was no doubt in his mind that one of those said enemies were behind her infection in the first place.

"Of course they were." Her voice was as bitter as the coffee that steamed before her. A drink she never would have touched before the nightmare, but that now she seemed to enjoy. It was odd how things grew on you. "It's a good start Rhyan, and you have other things that you need to concern yourself with. You can't chain yourself to the lab again and no more so can I. We're going to have to open this up to other scientists."

The tempting smell of the Doctor's coffee reminded Rhyan of how exhausted he had become trying to solve this problem on his own. His friend obviously had a point. "Against my better judgement, I am inclined to agree with you Doctor. But we should only share the details of President Zal's involvement to those we absolutely trust. At the present time the only people on board who know the full facts are Daniel Sutherland, you and I." His mind briefly wandered towards thoughts of Jon Marshall and the damage he could do if this information fell into his hands; that is, if he wasn't already involved.

Content that he had achieved what he had set out to do, Rhyan thanked the doctor and made his way out of sickbay. Although he wasn’t entirely sure that bringing other scientists into the equation was a good idea, he did welcome Keisha’s advice and considered the proposition. As exhaustion bit at his heels, the Vulcan decided that sleep might help him come to a decision on the matter. As he reached the turbolift he ordered it to take him to deck two, where his quarters were located. They would soon be at Hadronus and he would need his wits about him when they got there, therefore sleep was mandatory.

Maybe the solution to all his problems would come to him in his dreams.

OOC: A JP almost six months in the making! Enjoy!

 

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