Outbreak (Part II of II)
Posted on Wed Aug 26, 2020 @ 3:46am by Commander Amia Telamon M.D. & Lieutenant Commander River Morgan & Civilian 'Arrival' Geral Lasuma & Lieutenant Annora Tessaro & Ensign Jessica Mayhew & Gunnery Sergeant Terry Henderson & Civilian Melvyn Raddon
1,251 words; about a 6 minute read
Mission:
Et In Arcadia Ego
Location: Promenade
Timeline: MD05 1300
Previously in
River tried to sedate her with a gentle dose delivered from a hypospray. It had no effect at all other than to make the woman push River out of the way in order to return to her bumping again.
Terry said. "According to Travis, that woman coughed some sort of crystal dust all over the ensign. Now look at this."
Terry showed her the tricorder scan of Ensign Mayhew and the crystalline growth.
"By the Spirits!" River exclaimed, looking at the scan and the growth which was accelerating alarmingly. "Let's run the same scan over our bumper-car friend over here."
And now the conclusion
* * * * * * * PROMENADE * * * * * * *
Melvyn Raddon was enjoying his lunch at one of the new Human cuisine restaurants that had just opened on the Promenade. "The Terran Sun" strove to be the brightest and most radiant establishment of all the dining establishments. Melvyn himself had sought an opportunity to escape the confines of his office and visit the locale for weeks. He had finally found time in his schedule to get away, and he was glad that he had.
As he continued to review the menu on his padd, he heard voices rising from the Promenade three levels below. The sound of confusion and disturbance continued to rise. He put down his padd and turned to observe the source of the cacophony below. He stood up and walked over the ledge to get a better view.
From his vantage point he could see the female security officer gasping for air as other security personnel surround her. Further up the Promenade he can see a woman staggering back and forth as she tried to walk in a straight line, but was failing at the task. Apparently, she was a person of interest, as Melvyn could see another medical personnel following the woman. She did not seem to notice, or at least did not care.
"What I wouldn't give for a simply dull moment on this damn station," Melvyn cursed under his breath as he nodded toward his security consultants just below his level.
Vostriva turned to the medic, who had joined the security team to deal with the original patient. "Whatever was in that hypospray doesn't seem to have worked. How do you wanna deal with her?"
"There is a security barrier erected all around this area. We need it lowered so Mr. Raddon can return to his complex," the male said to the petty officer who appeared to be the senior most security personnel in the immediate area.
“I’m sorry, but we need to keep the area locked down,” Travis told the man. “We have a situation. We will let you know when you may leave the area,” he promised.
"We're not sure what exactly is going on, but we'd rather not be stuck here while Starfleet sorts it out. I'm sure you can understand, Petty Officer...?" the man said to Travis.
“Nottingham, sir,” Travis replied. “And if you are patient, this will be sorted soon.”
"Right, Nottingham, you can call me Warrington," the security consultant said with a smile. "I understand that you have a job to do, but so does Mr. Raddon. We're really just trying to get out of your hair while you take care of this unfortunate situation," he said with a convincing smile.
Travis nodded. “And you can do that by going back inside,” he requested, a bit more firmness in his tone as the matter was pressed.
Melvyn gripped the railing in frustration as he watched the scene play out. Whatever the problem was, it appeared that the dazed and confused woman was the center of it all.
"Just put a disruptor blast through her chest and we can resolve all of this in short order," the elder man mumbled under his breath. Unfortunately, the only Raddon Corporation personnel on this side of the barrier was himself, Warrington, and a handful of others. Certainly not enough to push the issue towards resolution.
* * * * * * * QUARANTINE AREA OF THE PROMENADE * * * * * * *
Terry went and ran the same scan. His face wrinkled up a bit, and he got close to River so his voice wouldn't carry far.
"Whatever it is, it’s starting to grow near her heart," Terry said. "It hasn't gone through blood vessels, but I bet it is pressing on nerves, which would explain her erratic movements. I think it may be some sort of parasite that may be intelligent enough not to kill its source of food, but that is just a guess. Given the growth rate, I recommend putting her in stasis, which hopefully will slow the growth down."
"That's a very sensible idea, Gunny," River agreed with a soft voice and a nod of her head, appreciating the subtlety of Terry's approaching this quietly to avoid too many ears overhearing. The last thing they needed was a panic. "Let's get them both returned to Sickbay on an emergency medical transport and straight into quarantine there for further observations and tests. I think we're needed here to keep these people contained, but calm, if we possibly can," she added, rolling her eyes at the effort that was going to take and the chances of their success, which felt low right now.
Jessica’s glazed eyes blinked slowly, and she gave a slight cough, a bit of that crystalline dust sparkling in the air. Then she just started to walk away.
The woman at the railing started to climb up, and only the security barrier kept her from going over the side to plummet fifty decks to the arboretum below.
Terry nodded and got the transport taken care of, letting River start scanning the others. She was the senior officer and had more leeway to speak for the station. Terry then returned to scanning people. He wasn't finding anyone else infected.
Jessica and the other zombie disappeared in the haze of transporter effect.
Scans revealed some of the crystal particulate to be on surfaces, but absent an organic host, it seemed to go inert quickly. Once the area was cleared of people, a standard boron radiation decontamination sweep would hopefully sterilize the area.
With the immediate threat cleared and no signs of further infections, the next task was to clear the area of people ahead of a decon sweep. It wouldn't be that complicated of a task, but would require some extra personnel. After talking with Security Control, Vostriva turned to Travis.
"We have two more security teams enroute to help clear the area. Do you want to assist, or shall we contact you when it's over?"
"I think we'll be of more use back in Sickbay, if you're happy to go ahead here?" River suggested, and tapped her comm badge in readiness of Travis' agreement or refusal of their exit. She stood next to Henderson in anticipation of requesting emergency medical transport to Sickbay for two.
Terry took his cue from the doctor and stood ready to beam out. He hoped no one else had inhaled any of the residue. Even a little bit could cause issues that would take longer to show up, which would be worse for them as it could be days or weeks before it really started to manifest.
[FIN]
Ltcdr. River Morgan
Assistant Chief Medical Officer
GSgt Terry Henderson
Combat Medic
21st MEU
PO Lecesse and Ens. Akioka
Security Officers
Ens. Jessica Mayhew
Security Officer
PO3 Travis Nottingham
Security Officer
Melyvn Raddon
CEO
Raddon Corporation
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