Out of the Darkness into the Light

Chapter 4

Bittersweet Prospects

Kathryn slowly awoke; she could hear a muffled argument. She looked around the room trying to get her bearings. She soon remembered where she was and why. She felt tired, worn out and feeble. She couldn't quite tell who was arguing with whom, but she figured that one of the people had to be the doctor, considering that the argument was emanating from his office. She pulled herself off the bio bed with shaky legs. She caught her balance as she nearly fell. She steadied herself using the edge of the bio bed, then slowly made her way toward the office, so that she could hear what was going on. As she moved closer she could make out that it was indeed the doctor, he was arguing with Chakotay about something, she smiled to herself knowing that it was most likely about her. She stopped just before the window.

"Doctor it's to risky, you don't know if it will even work. At least the radiation has been proven to work." His voice was rising in his fear and anger.

"Commander, I know that it has never been tested, however it would be safer."

"You don't know that for sure, we'd only have enough time to try once, if this plan doesn't work she'll die."

"Don't you think that I'm aware of that, I really would like to try this, it's the same theory as the radiation, and it wouldn't expose her to the high doses of radiation she'd have to under go. Which if you remember correctly that in it's self could kill her." The doctor sounded angry that Chakotay wouldn't go with what he was purposing, he also sounded confident that his idea, whatever that was, would work and would be safer. "Commander the treatment that was originally instated was done so in the late twenty third century, our medical technology is far more advanced, I believe that this will work."

"I believe that you do it's just I don't want her being a guinea pig."

"Commander, are you implying that…" His voice was cut short when he heard another.

"Doctor, why don't you discus your idea with me and not Chakotay, after all I'm the one that could die." Both men's heads turned to see Kathryn standing in the doorway; she was shaking slightly and had one hand one the frame for support.

Simultaneously they jumped up: calling her by her title and name, then Chakotay's voice rang out "you shouldn't be up why on earth." He scooped her up and carried her back to the bio bed. Setting her down, as the doctor came around to the other side.

"Captain, you need to stay in bed and conserve your strength, and for that why on earth were you out of bed." He was scanning her as Chakotay brushed hair out of her face.

"I heard you two arguing and I wanted to know why. It's never a good thing when people argue in a sickbay." She said pushing Chakotay's hand away and sitting up. She was tired and felt week but she wanted to know what on earth they had been arguing about. "Now, tell me what you talking about." She managed to say before Chakotay and the doctor pushed her back down.

"I'll explain it in a minuet now lay down." The doctor stated clearly annoyed, "I swear Captains are the worst patients ever." He took a few more scans purposely holding out on telling her.

Kathryn knew full well what he was doing; he liked to do it to her. She figured that he was trying to teach her patience but at the present moment she'd had enough. "Doctor," she stated weekly giving him a death glare, or least the best one she could muster at the moment.

The doctor sighed and smiled smugly for a second before he spoke. "Well I have been studying our data base and came across an interesting idea, It was first introduced by Dr. Jeffery Tymen during the early twenty forth century. He figured that if someone were to develop a way, without radiation, to destroy the white blood cells then it should work the same way, without all the secondary risks to the person. He figured that you could create a…"

"Low level pathogen, that would target the white blood cells, and no other tissue, He also stated that the pathogen would have to have a short half life or the rest of the treatment wouldn't work, because the pathogen would kill the introduced white blood cells as well. I'm very much aware of Tymen's theory doctor." Kathryn stated finishing for the doctor.

The doctor was very much taken aback; he had no Idea that the captain knew so much about this particular disease. He figured that was why she took the news the way she did. "I had no idea that you knew so much on this subject."

"I wrote a paper on it back at the academy, got an A on it too, but that's not important right now," she pulled herself back into a sitting position, she hated discussing things of this much importance well laying on her back. She could feel Chakotay trying to make her lay down again but manage to keep him from doing so. "What is important is that his theory was turned down, it is next to impossible to create such a specific pathogen."

"Your very much correct captain, however I have developed a slightly different approach to this very problem. I believe that I have created a pathogen that would only target the white blood cells."

"That may be so doctor, but that doesn't solve the problem of the pathogen destroying the new cells."

"I know and I have given that extreme thought, and have developed a way to combat the pathogen."

Kathryn's interest was peeked now; it was the first time in nearly fifty years that anyone had come up with another idea, besides radiation therapy, for treating this disease. "I'm listening"

The doctor turned on the monitor that was next to the bed. "This is the pathogen here," he pointed to a section of the screen. "I have genetically engineered it to target white blood cells and white blood cells only. However I was unable to engineer a sufficient half-life. Which would hinder the rest of the treatment."

"Yes, that's the same problem they had originally, no one could create a pathogen that would die quickly enough."

"Indeed, That is why I developed this." He pressed a few buttons and another image appeared on the screen. "I have developed this to target the pathogen and destroy it, before the new white blood cells are administered." The doctor folded his arms across his chest. He looked very smug.

"You, believe that this would work?" He nodded. Kathryn was interested, although what Chakotay said was correct, either way there would be only one chance, one mistake, one miscalculation with either treatment could cost her her life. "Ok, say that I decided to go with this, and not the radiation, how would you go about the treatment?"

The doctor was waiting for this moment; he had a very detailed explanation for her. "I would first administer the pathogen, it would then start destroying the white blood cells in you system, as well as the bone marrow. During this time you will be under strict quarantine, as to not expose you to any other viruses, or bacteria so that you don't develop a secondary infection. As soon as your white blood cells are destroyed then I will administer the antidote. Once the pathogen is destroyed. The rest is the same as the radiation procedure. I will perform a bone marrow transplant form a donor, thus giving you the anti body to combat the virus." When he finished, he noted that she was deep in thought.

His proposal sounded very well thought out. She looked at him, "I'd like to review your research, please." She didn't doubt the doctor, and his idea sounded a whole lot more inviting then being intentionally exposed to high levels of radiation.

He nodded then picked up a data padd from a tray that lay next to the bio bed, "I thought you would" he handed her the padd. She took it and started to read over it. "Captain I don't want to rush you, except I'm sure you know that you have to make your decision soon. We're running out of time, soon the virus will reach your lungs, and heart, and I'm sure I don't have to tell you what happens next."

She nodded, he was right; it had been nearly three days since the virus manifested it's self. The virus was capable of killing its victims in three days if they were in poor health to began with, however she was healthy, which gave her more of a chance, still the longest anyone ever survived without treatment was seven days, there fore not giving her much time to decide which treatment to go with. She laid back reading the padd, she had become slightly dizzy sitting and opted to lie down. She finished reading all the information, his idea sounded very plausible, and a lot better then the alternative. She would have said go a head right then and there except Chakotay had seemed extremely concerned and she decided to get his opinion. "Doctor, could Chakotay and I discuss this for a moment"

"Yes, of course," he excused himself to his office.

"Chakotay, what do you think about this?"

"Well to tell you the truth, I don't like any of it, not ejecting you with a pathogen that will kill off your bodies only means of protecting it's self from infection, and then hoping that the antidote is successful to prevent the same pathogen from destroying the one thing that would save your life. I also don't like the idea of exposing you to such high doses of radiation that could kill your, or severely disable you either."

"Chakotay, I hate to say this but those at the moment are our only options, and it's not like we have very much time to come up with a new one."

Chakotay sighed, he took her hand into his, "I know, it's just I love you and I don't want to lose you, every thing keeps pointing to the fact you could die. And frankly that scares the hell out of me."

"I understand but I need to make a decision, and soon," she looked down at her hands then back up into his eyes. "Chakotay, did the doctor actually tell you the severity of this?"

"No, all he said was that it could kill you,"

She squeezed his hand tightly before continuing, "what he didn't tell you was how fast it could kill. This virus has the ability of killing a person in three days, but that usually only happens if the person is young, weak, or old. However the longest a person lived without treatment was only seven days, as soon as the virus migrates to the heart and lungs, that's pretty much it. That is why I need to make this decision now." She gazed into his eyes deeply, letting him know that she was serious. She took a very deep breath, " I think that the doctors idea is the best plan, I know that it has never been tested, but most of what happens out here hasn't. Also the chances of me surviving the radiation are very low, especially in my weekend state, the grand majority of people that died, died during treatment, so…" her voice trailed off.

Chakotay nodded, he was still unaware of the odds of her surviving the original treatment, and that was probably a good thing. "All right, if you're that confident about the doctors plan, then I say let's go for it." He gently kissed her, still holding onto her hand.

"Doctor," she called out, barely loud enough for him to hear. She could feel herself growing even weaker, and new that they needed to start the treatment soon, or else. She pushed the thought away, as the doctor came out. He nodded to her, a silent question asking her what they had decided. "I've, we've, decided that we'll go with your treatment."

The doctor nodded, "All right just let me get prepared, and we'll start just a soon as Kes comes in this afternoon. In the meant time I suggest you try and get some sleep, and commander, aren't you suppose to be getting back to the bridge?" Chakotay nodded, he leaned down and kissed her once more, before heading to the door, he stopped and looked back to her. "Don't worry Commander I'll call you and let you know if there is any change, and before we start treatment. Chakotay gave one more nodded of understanding before he disappeared. The doctor turned his attention back to Kathryn. Pressing a hypo spray into her neck, he said, "this is a sedative, it will help you sleep,"

"Thank you for everything doctor, I know I'm in good hands" she managed to say before she succumbed to the sedative.