Victor stared at the young surgeon, completely speechless. The virus they'd gone through hell to destroy…was back?
"You're serious, Stiles?" asked Victor, furrowing his brow.
"I'm completely serious. I can hear it screaming," was Derek's reply. Victor paced, thinking of what could be done. They had all the tools necessary to perform an operation, but no serum to destroy the virus. Of course Victor hadn't brought it along, there was no need. Luckily, the virus could be removed, and hopefully it would be enough. Derek always had his bag of medical instruments, so surgery would have to take place immediately to ensure the infant's survival.
"Is my little brother going to be okay…?" asked the frightened young neko girl, tears filling her eyes. Derek rubbed her head and smiled, answering with a gentle and reassuring "yes". The next moment, the neko tribe was ordered to clear a shelter to serve as an O.R., and it was definitely a risky procedure. No heart monitor, no anesthesia, and no shield from the elements but a wooden roof. Things were beginning to look bleak before the operation had begun.
"Dr. Stiles, are you sure we can really perform an operation here?" asked Angie.
"If we wait until we're taken to Caduceus Europe, the infant will surely be killed before then. We've dealt with the virus before, we know what has to be done and we know what could happen if we don't hurry. The effects could be devastating, especially on a patient so young. We have to do it now," answered Derek. Angie nodded unsurely, preparing the patient and the "O.R.".
Sydney was greatly against the operation, and he was positive they would fail. Cybil went on to explain the risks of the procedure without the use of anesthesia, and how painful and unbearable it would be for the new-born. It was hard to argue with the director and a highly skilled anesthesiologist, but what choice did Derek have? He lived to help people, and this baby needed his help terribly. He had to proceed.
Angie gave a succinct briefing and with their fingers crossed, the operation began.
The Caduceus Six held their breaths as the incision was made. The baby was already howling in pain, making it very difficult to focus. Cybil was nearly in tears, as well as Angie at hearing the infant's cries of distress. The worst had not even been experienced, but the child was thoroughly convinced he was being killed.
Soothingly, Cybil stroked the boy's hair and spoke softly to him, trying to ease the pain or to at least take his mind off it. Of course, it wasn't every day you had your chest cut open for no apparent reason.
What Derek saw next made his heart stop. Before his eyes was not what he had expected. The NRCV did not look the way this did, and he feared this was something much more severe.
Victor's eyes widened, staring at the small object swimming around in the blood sack around the baby's heart. It was indeed an intimidating sight.
Nobutaki, who had accompanied them as well suddenly stood up and shrieked. He was backing up, staring in horror at the object that was swimming inside one of his people.
"Rinken…" he whispered, dropping to his knees in despair.
"Pardon me…?" queried Sydney, his brow furrowed and his voice nearly inaudible.
"Rinken, it's… it's the virus that killed all those nekos in the war and wiped out half my tribe in a single night… I knew his mother had it, but I did not know she had passed it to him…" he answered woefully. "Rinken was created by a neko doctor; his name was Dr. Jonas Rinken Smith."
Everyone gasped, thoughts racing through their minds of the events that had unfolded only 6 months before. Dr. Jonas Smith, Marie's father, was the creator of the NRCV, which was actually called "Rinken" originally, after his middle name according to Nobutaki.
He was dead now, but somehow his virus did not die with him like they'd desperately hoped. This infant had contracted it from his mother, but the question was: where is his mother?
"I'm afraid the boy's mother passed away after giving birth to him. It was strange, because she was very strong and she fought the virus for so long. I thought her will-power had defeated it, but then she died. I never imagined he'd caught the virus too," explained Nobutaki, answering their question without them even asking it aloud.
"Stiles, don't you get it? He contracted the virus from his mother, and that sort of case isn't very common, obviously, because we've never had one like it. This means that when the virus spreads to the fetus, it becomes a new strain!" shouted Victor, adding all the pieces together and discovering the problem they were currently faced with.
"Victor, you're a genius," said Derek, still concentrating on the patient.
"Well we all know that. Now, since it's a new strain, we'll probably have to find a new way to kill it. I suggest you go with the SSIE method."
"What method?" asked Derek looking at his colleague with a raised eye-brow.
"The SSIE method, the stun it, stab it, inject it, extract it technique. Only, skip the inject part obviously since we don't have any serum," explained Victor.
Derek did as instructed and stunned the virus with the laser. Being cautious not to burn any of the tissue, he used the laser on the quick-moving virus many times to ensure that it was stunned long enough and incapable of escaping the stroke of the scalpel. The virus let out a small shriek, but nothing more. Derek had already stabbed it with the scalpel before it could release another sharp, heart-stopping cry.
Victor watched carefully for any signs of movement beneath the virus, because if it planted anything unexpected in the heart while it was dying, they needed to get rid of it right away.
The baby was still bawling, wanting his torture to end. It had been a brutal 10 minutes, and he was about ready to surrender to the virus and die if it meant the suffering would end. Cybil continued to soothe him as Derek removed the virus with care and placed it in the Petri dish provided at his side by Angie. He used the ultra-sound to search for any other surprises, but no other foreign objects could be detected. With a sigh of relief, Derek applied anti-bacterial gel to all the infected areas created by the Rinken and sutured the incision.
Victor gritted his teeth, glaring at the virus that lied dead in the Petri dish. The operation was completed, but the war between doctor and virus was far from over to Victor's dismay.