In the Lab

Posted on 24 Oct 2026 @ 3:36pm by Captain Harvey Geisler & Lieutenant Commander Kennedy Monroe M.D. & Lieutenant Daynah Ral

2,321 words; about a 12 minute read

Mission: Acceleration
Location: Medical Lab
Timeline: February 8, 2391 || 2130 hours

Once the Captain had removed himself from the main sickbay, he proceeded with haste to the medical lab. On the way, he armed himself with a medical tricorder and a padd synced with the ship's logbook and departmental reports database so he could receive the reports from the Away Team once they'd had a chance to record all of the information. He also took the opportunity to put on a hazmat suit. Although both he and Doctor Monroe had been infected, Monroe had been exposed to... whatever this was the longest, and without knowing how quickly she'd react, or how the mutation would accelerate in the proximity of two who were unevenly infected, he wanted to give all parties the best fighting chance.

The doors to the lab hissed open, and Harvey entered quickly. "What do you have so far, Doctor?" he asked.

Even though she knew to expect it, turning to see Harvey in a hazmat suit Kennedy was still internally startled. It was one thing to see the medical staff wearing them, it was quite another to see the Captain in one. It brought home reality and was a reminder of the uncertainty they faced.

Kennedy was no stranger coping with uncertainty in her career generally or on the Black Hawk in particular, but tending to battle wounds and dealing with the possibility of death was different from having no answers or a familiar plan to follow. Keeping everyone alive would be a lot easier if she knew why this was happening and could be proactive rather than reactive. Monroe knew logically, of course, the fate of the entire crew wasn't solely just in her hands, but what her heart understood clearly was, she knew everyone was looking to her to give them answers, and right now, all she could do was offer clarity on what she didn't know.

Daynah stepped into the lab armed and suited up. She was unsure of what was to come, and the idea that the Captain could be infected loomed over her head. On her other hip was a tricorder. She had to make sure that only was she safe, but her tools remained clear of whatever this was. Without a word she began to make her scans. There was so much data that the sooner she began to compile it, the better off they would all be.

"I've run every test I can think of, Captain," Kennedy replied, the frustration in her voice clear. "I don't think we're looking at a traditional virus or a bacterial infection as the impetus for this, but I realize telling you what this isn't is not the same as giving you answers on what it is."

The Captain took immediate note of the sidearm Lieutenant Ral wore outside her environmental suit. Part of him tensed up immediately, knowing that that weapon could be easily used on him. It would not be the first time he'd been shot with a phaser aboard his ship, and he certainly hoped it would never happen again.

Still looking at the phaser, Harvey simply said, "When you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth."

Monroe took note of Harvey's eyes lingering on Ral's sidearm even as she heard him quote Arthur Conan Doyle and Sherlock Holmes. She'd read his medical history so she understood why he'd be hypervigilant around weapons generally, but especially now after she imagined the memories of his captivity were still fresh. Kennedy did not want to step on T'Mari's toes, and God knew she had enough on her plate, but as his doctor, it would be wrong for her to ignore it because of who she was personally and professionally. She made a mental note to pull him aside when she could.

Harvey turned back to Doctor Monroe and expounded. "Let's eliminate what it is not, and that will reduce the locations where we can look for cause. Can we rule out traditional viruses and bacterial infections? And, we can assume that the nebula is in some way responsible. Miss Ral, let's get to work on analyzing the data you've collected so far. Eliminate what is known so we can focus on the unusual."

Daynah nodded and turned to a terminal. She began to punch up the data on the screen as her thoughts wandered for the moment. The idea of having to fire on her own crewmates was something that both Daynah and Ral detested. However, they both understood that it may be come to that.

"The nebula is my strongest hypothesis for precipitating factors outside a virus or bacterial infection -- at least the ones we know about," Kennedy qualified. She could not say if some sort of biological process was part of the nebula itself.

"Anything else to that hypothesis?" Harvey asked, pulling up a chair. "Perhaps walking through what has happened to the Tiburon crew members you've assisted might reveal some things."

Monroe appreciated the suggestion as for the past few minutes, she'd started to feel warmer than she would have liked and was trying not to let it distract her. She wasn't sure if she was being paranoid or if this was a genuine symptom of something, but she noted it and promised to report it as soon she needed to.

"Ensign Kalifa, a human female, and Lieutent Cobb, a Bolian male, were the first patients," Kennedy recounted. "Kalifa was the priority initially because she was transported in gasping for air and clawing at her neck. She was absolutely terrified - fully conscious, but not really able to respond in any meaningful way. I tried to ask Cobb what had led to this, but he seemed confused, suspicious, and paranoid in his own right. He was stable for the longest time until he just wasn't," Monroe answered, the regret she felt for not being able to do more sooner very clear. Examination revealed Kalifa had developed gills and Cobb had developed these protrusions on his arms asssociated with feathers. The sounds he made, looking back, also sounded bird-like. Nurse Blake was able to stabilize Kalifah with the careful application of vapor, but it wasn't easy."

Monroe shook her head. "I'm unaware of any connection between Bolians and beings with feathers, but I admit, I wondered if the specific transformation was tied to race or species as opposed to something more individualized."

Harvey took a moment to consider possibilities and absorb the factual information. "Mix in the Away Team's report of other transformations, including a captain that may have turned into a tiger, then that may rule out what collective species turn into."

The Captain sat down beside the doctor and pulled up the Tiburon's crew manifest on a screen. It had not yet been revised to designate each person as alive, sick, or even absent without leave. Each of those status indicators would be a piece of evidence and a clue to solving this puzzle. "Looks like half the crew is human. Were other crewmembers transported in?"

Kennedy nodded, her eyes casting upward to search her memory, not because she had forgotten but because she wanted to be precise. "A human male, an Andorian woman, a Trill, and a Vulcan. Each of them were medically unstable, but showing signs of different transformations," Kennedy explained, deliberately using the word 'transformation' because she did not want what was happening to them to consciously or unconsciously erase their worth.

"Mottled skin, ridged swelling along the ribs, hair falling out, violent tremors..." Monroe ticked off each characteristic she recalled one finger at a time. "If I hadn't seen the others, some of those symptoms could look like familiar illnesses before the protrusions showed up, but I don't think we can afford to dismiss anything as coincidence," she added.

"Do we have any records in the Starfleet database regarding..." Harvey paused, debating his word choice, "transformations like these?" It was a long shot, and even if there was something recorded on record, that wouldn't mean that the means to reverse the process would be the same.

As if on cue Daynah turned from her console with a smile of sorts. "It seems that we think alike Captain. As you and the doctor spoke I began to research in the Starfleet Computer. The closest that anyone has come to transformations like these was in the year 2370. The USS Enterprise D encountered an Intron Virus, later named Barclay's Protomorphosis Syndrome after its first patient. In this virus patients would de-evolve along their genetic roots. Doctor Crusher's logs are all here and it seems that after a time Lieutenant Commander Data was able to fashion a cure using amniotic fluid from a pregnant crew member." Daynah reported. This particular case was fascinating and she marked it for later study whether it had something to do with this case or not.

Kennedy nodded, appreciating she and Daynah were thinking on the same wavelength. "That incident appears to be the closest to what I can surmise happened to the Tiburon crew. The solution centered on creating a retrovirus from the antibodies contained in the amniotic fluid."

Harvey listened carefully to both women, and took note of the differences between the Enterprise's situation and their own. "Doctor, I believe you said our Bolian patient was developing avian features, and there's no connections between birds and Bolians. And, if we assume that the tiger in our brig is actually the ship's Benzite captain, then I don't believe that the Benzites have a tiger of their own. What happened to the Enterprise doesn't seem to be what is happening here. but perhaps we can use this as a starting point."

Kennedy nodded. “I agree what happened on the Enterprise is not perfectly analogous to what we’re facing, but I agree it is a reasonable starting point that could perhaps inform our understanding of what’s happening here. To be clear, genetic mutation itself has occurred in other instances within Starfleet service, but the Enterprise incident is the one most similar, if imperfect, for what’s happening now, in my opinion.“

"It is something to go on," Harvey agreed. "Very well. If we assume that the Enterprise's incident is one to start with, where do we do so?"

"I think what is needed is a DNA sample from someone who is infected is the best place to start. My suggestion would be our Bolian patient. If we compare the DNA sample with what is on file we can see what precise segments in the DNA strand is being rewritten. From there we can start to map out what is happening." Daynah began with a suggestion of how to proceed. Then she decided to add another example that may help. "Further, while examining what the computer had I came across another incident that may be of help. Oddly, enough this is also from the Enterprise-D. This incident occurred in the year 2367. The Chief Engineer at the time Lieutenant Commander Geordi LaForge was infected by an alien parasite on the planet Tarchannen III. This parasite began to rewrite his DNA on the cellular level. It converted him into an entirely new entity. Dr Crusher was successful in removing the parasite and Commander LaForge reverted back to his normal state. It is possible that this study can be of use as well. In particular because of the DNA rewriting."

Harvey nodded, and looked over to the samples that had already been collected. "I'll contact Doctor Abrams and have fresh samples brought in during regular intervals. That way we can track how quickly the changes occur, just in case we're dealing with something exponential. Miss Ral, can you take a look at the LaForge incident and develop some tests. Doctor Monroe, can you take on the protomorphisis syndrome?"

Monroe nodded, then asked, “Might we spare someone from the science department who can liaise with me as I explore that particular theory while other theories are being pursued? I just want to make sure no information gets lost and while I have my own laboratory personnel, I know they are busy also keeping us updated on what we can do to help keep the patients we have stable.“ She paused, then added somewhat reluctantly, “also, in the interest of full disclosure. I have been feeling a bit warm. I’m not sure it’s anything in particular to worry about, but I can’t expect others to report their symptoms if I am reluctant to do the same. Are the two of you feeling OK?“

The Captain immediately picked up a nearby tricorder and activated it. It was a bit difficult working the wand with a gloved hand, leaving him to wonder why, after all these decades, Starfleet couldn't have developed something more friendly for bulky hands. "Any other symptoms besides being warm?"

Kennedy considered the question for a moment, mentally scanning her body for anything unusual. “My throat feels a bit sore, almost like I slept with my mouth open.“ Of course, the doctor couldn’t rule out the possibility her symptoms were psychosomatic. It wasn’t as if she didn’t have things to be anxious about, after all.

Daynah nodded at the order from the Captain. She hoped that he established a clear chain of command.

Harvey nodded at the Doctor, then added, "Normally I'd say go get yourself checked out. Today I think I'll have to say Physician, heal thyself." He then looked over to the science chief. "Lieutenant, per the doctor's request, is there anyone who can assist us in our research? Anyone with a knack for exobiology will do."

There was no opportunity for the scientist to answer. Harvey felt his body flung onto the counter as the room was suddenly cloaked in darkness. As he fought to steady himself and maintain consciousness, he could only wonder what had just gone terribly wrong.

RSS Feed