Blood & Black Lace

Posted on Thursday, 8 October 2020 - 1:53pm by Captain Barret Stillwater & Emerick & Lieutenant Talarn Zilth & Lieutenant Ryan Rose MD & Lieutenant T'Lanna Vali & Lieutenant Alex Kingsley & Lieutenant JG Kay’la

Mission: Operation: Dreamweaver
Location: Sickbay
Timeline: MD8 0005 hours

The clock had just turned midnight when all hell broke loose in Sickbay, T’Lanna’s readings were off the charts in every degree something was definitely very, very wrong. Her Borg implants were totally out of whack with her body and were starting to deteriorate, there was something very wrong with her nanites.

Commander Stillwater was pacing about as the Emergency Medical Hologram and the tiny medical personnel tended to patients. The Sickbay of the small starship was not the least bit spacious, but it was not at confining as other areas of the starship. Stillwater knew that there was something wrong, terribly wrong with at least Lieutenant Vali. To make matters worse, she was with child. He had permitted her to stay aboard and continue her duties up until a point where she would be medically forced on maternity leave. They were not quite there yet.

Stillwater had done his best to keep her out of harm's way, but harm had come to them this time. "How bad is it?" Stillwater asked, breaking his silence and very concerned about his ship's Psychologist. This was not the mission he had signed them up for. It was supposed to be scientific in nature, exploitative even, but instead, the science was deadly and the exploration was themselves. These aliens from subspace had taken the crew and began experimentation on them.

The E.M.H. was tending to Lieutenant Vali. "They are both alive, mother and child," replied the hologram. Though Emerick was not one to really project too much in the way of 'emotion' when he was working, there was certainly something that could have been read as a concern in his tone. "However, they are in danger and it is crucial that Lieutenant Zilth and Chief Eyelaya be here to assist."

Stillwater was taken aback. "Why them? Talarn has basic medical training, but believe me, I mean basic. Living on Prairie with him, I can attest."

Emerick nodded. He dismissed the story. "Because he is ex-Borg and the only other one aboard with nanites," replied Emerick. "Lieutenant Vali's nanites were... tampered with in some way. I do not know how exactly, but Chief Eyelaya may be able to help clarify that."

"What about Doctor Rose?" asked Commander Stillwater, noting that Dr. Rose was lying on a biobed nearby.

Emerick shook his head. "Don't worry, he's not dead. He's just... unconscious, but they did something to his artificial ribs, explained Emerick. "Nurse Kay'la, can you load a hypo and wake, Dr. Rose up. His surgical expertise would be most useful right now," ordered the E.M.H. "I have summoned Zilth and Eyelaya. They should be on their way."

Kay'la nodded. "Of course Doctor," she picked up a hypospray from the nearby tray and gently pressed it to Ryan's neck. She gave it a few seconds and then asked. "Doctor Rose, can you hear me?"

Eyelaya was none too pleased to be working Emerick, but Vali's life was on the line. She picked up every bit of equipment she had that would help her deal with the ex-borg and headed to Sickbay. She was there within minutes. "Commander." She nodded at Stillwater. "Nurse." She ignored Emerick, for the most part. "What can I help with?"

"I need your help," replied Emerick asserting himself into responding. The two had a tense, if not completely destroyed personal relationship at this point. "Chief, Lieutenant Vali needs you. If I cannot figure out what's wrong with her nanites we may lose her... and her child."

She gave a nod. She quietly unpacked her bag of toys and pulled out a rounded instrument. "This is a nanite scanner. It attaches like a cortical monitor. If you will extract a nanite from her arm, I can examine it closer while I attach this."

Emerick looked over his shoulder. Rose was stirring a bit but still looked out of it. "Your ex-wife is back," said Emerick. "If that doesn't wake him up, nothing will," the E.M.H. added, turning his attention back to Lieutenant Vali as he began to extract a nanite from the woman's arm. It was needed to better understand what was going on.

Ryan stumbled out of the bio bed, blinking and clutching at his side with an uttered curse. He grabbed onto Emerick's upper arm. "What's going on?" he asked, looking around and slowly starting to get his bearings.

"I believe you requested one Borg nanite," he said passing it over to Eyelaya on a small petri dish.

Ryan looked to Eyelaya, Emerick, the petri dish, taking it all in, but giving Emerick a chance to get him back up to speed.

"Easy there, sunshine," Emerick said to Doctor Rose. "Don't know what you remember, but in short, subspace aliens abducted you and several members of the crew. They performed... surgeries and experimentation. We have some back, but not all are in good shape. They messed with your ribs, but they did worse to Lieutenant Vali. Her nanites... something isn't right," he said to Rose.

She took the dish with a nod. "Watch her readings while that's on her head. At the slightest sign of higher blood pressure shut it off." She took the nanite to an empty table and then began examining it.

Ryan continued to hold Emerick's upper arm as he took a few very careful deep breaths, trying to push the pain away enough for him to help. "Get me my tricorder, please," he told Nurse Kay'la. Finally stepping out of Emerick's personal space to take T'Lanna's hand. He'd leave this procedure to Eyelaya. She was better qualified for it than he was.

Stillwater tapped his comm badge. His husband had not yet arrived in Sickbay and Barret was getting worried. "Spoonhead, we need you in Sickbay. Where are you?"

Talarn had just stepped into sickbay when his comm went off. He stepped up behind Barret quickly and cleared his throat softly. "You rang, Husband? Sorry, I had to dress." He looked around and rubbed the back of his neck, seeing T'Lanna on the biobed. "What's going on?"

Stillwater nodded and gestured to the bio bed. "Something is wrong with her Borg nanites. They may need to harvest some from you, Tal" replied Stillwater. He looked at Eyelaya "Do we know what the problem is yet?"

"Well sir..." As if on cue a nanite sprouted from Vali's cheek. "Crap!" Eyelaya ran to the woman. With a series of injections and several sprouting points later She sighed. "Okay...that was close. Talarn we need your help. Her nanites are....Borganizing again...totally know that's not a word. But we need to take some nanites from you to reprogram however...I can't just remove them. You'll have to do the tube thing and do a direct transfer."

"Talarn, do the 'tube thing'" said Stillwater nodding to his husband. "I want medical updates routinely ladies and gentlemen, and do not allow 'Borganizing' to get out of hand. The last thing we need right now is the starship to become assimilated" Stillwater noted sharply. "If I am needed, I will be on the Bridge."

Stillwater stepped outside of Sickbay, walked away from the entrance and proceeded down the corridor a bit before stopping and taking a deep breath. Borg he thought to himself. It sent a shiver down his spine. He tapped his comm badge "Stillwater to Kingsley, I want you to take some precautions. Be ready to seal off key locations of the starship with shielding on rotating modulations. I'm leaving Sickbay now. They are handling Borg nanites in order to save Lieutenant Vali."

Unseen by him, Lieutenant Kingsley had a similar reaction to the news. Yet her voice sounded calm and unconcerned, albeit tired, when she replied, “understood, internal sensors will monitor Sickbay and initiate protocols if the nanites breach.”

"Proceed," noted Stillwater.