2259 – May 9th 1335 Hours
Liv scowled at the overhead comm. as Jim's voice filled the ship. "I would like to request that every crewmember eats only prepackaged, emergency meals from here on out. We will solve the problem at hand but until then every precaution should be taken. Thank you."
"Too little, too late you ass." She muttered at her twin.
"Liwine, will I be alwight?" Pavel asked her from the biobed, his pale face twisted by a look of barely contained terror. "You will sawe me, yes?"
She smiled and brushed his curls from his forehead. "Of course I will kiddo. You've still got to explain to me how the Russian's invented soccer."
He smiled a wan but sweet little smile. "Eet's footbawl, Liwine." He corrected her as he always did when she called the sport by the old American term.
God he's such a great kid. She thought as she smiled a little more. "Sure it is, Pavel." She teased. "You're not contagious so you can go to your quarters for the next few days but I'll be checking on you every few hours, okay?" His face fell again and Liv wished she hadn't had to bring it back up, but she had other patients to see, to conform they, too, were dying. "Hey," she teased, tapping his frown, "no worries. I'm not letting you go anytime soon kiddo. I've always wanted a little brother, ya know."
His pretty blue eyes, like her own but paler, brightened. She'd never called him the term to his face before, but she'd been thinking of him in such a way for a few months… since her birthday. "You mean it, Liwine?" he asked in a very soft voice.
Does he have no one? She wondered, is he as alone as Jim and I or is he just separated from them? Still she kissed his forehead in a maternal or sisterly way and swatted the back of his head. "Duh I mean it kid, now get your adorable ass to bed."
He stood up, a little shakily but he refused her arm when she offered it, and left the Sick Bay. "I mean it!" she yelled at his back. "Bed rest, don't you pull a 'Jim' and ignore my orders, ya hear me?" He turned and shot her a smile as the door whooshed shut behind him.
"You can't promise than, Liv." Len muttered to her as she passed him, heading to the next crewman complaining of nausea, dizziness, and a mild fever after lunch.
"I just did." She snapped back softly, turning to glare at his green eyes. But they were soft with understanding, not disapproval, so she softened her tone. "I'm not letting that boy die, Len. I WILL save him, even if it kills me."
She turned back to her fourth new patient, of the ten, and smiled charmingly. No sense in frightening them, everyone already knew the first two were dead and more were on the way.
May 10th 1519 Hours
Liv scowled at Len from over Crewwoman Hacker's body. "The others looked like this?" She asked in a soft growl of a voice.
"Yes Liv, they did." Len answered. His eyes narrowed as he realized what she was thinking. "Liv it's not possible. Hemorrhagic Small Pox has been extinct for centuries!"
"It was kept alive in biochemical facilities as a potential biological weapon, Len. You know that as well as I do!" She snapped back, bringing her hand down on the tools table beside her, rattling the instruments on the metal table and making her hand ache.
"It kills in four days Livine! This took two weeks! And it's the most contagious pathogen known to modern science." Len argued.
Liv scowled. "Have you ever seen the vids of what this does? Of the autopsies?" She asked angrily. How DARE he keep this from me! We could have known days ago what this was if he'd just been sensible!
"No, but Livine would you listen to me? Why would anyone make Small Pox food-born and food-born only? And how would anyone get their hands on it?" Len set down the scalpel and had soothed his voice, clearly trying to calm her down some…
Liv ignored him and went to the console. She pulled up her own vids from her computer via wireless access. "I did a study of biological weapons as a student. This is a perfect weapon, Len." She pulled up a particularly vivid vid file. "Just look."
It was almost satisfying to watch his face contort into looks of horror, shock, and then resignation. "Let me prove it." She begged. "Please. You took me off identification days ago. Put me back, let me show you. I've finally dug up some restricted files."
His mouth pressed into a fine line behind the ion mask. "Damn you woman." He said, annoyed but resigned. "Fine, fine! Get. Go chase that white whale of yours!"
She smiled and closed down the access to her computer files before blowing Len a kiss and dashing from the room. At the door she hesitated and turned back, grinning. "And Len, this isn't a white whale. Yours is the only 'dick' I think about!" She whirled around before the rampant blush could become too visible and ran before he could come up with a come back. OH my GOD! I cannot believe I just SAID that! She yelled at herself.
Had she hung back for a moment she'd of heard the hearty, hoarse, roar of a laugh that echoed through the autopsy room, followed by the words, "She'll be the death of me, I swear."
2356 Hours
Len answered the ringing at his door only moments after it had started. He hadn't been asleep yet, he hadn't dared. Someone else could come in sick or one of his current patients could take a turn for the worse. Every time he'd closed his eyes he'd imagined an emergent call over the comm. Sleep was eluding him.
Liv stood in his doorway, her arms laden with PADDs. Her hair was mussed, like she'd been tugging on it or running her hands through it, her beautiful eyes had huge dark rings under them, and she was so pale. But her lips were pulled back in a triumphant grin.
"I've got it." She said simply. "I've got it!" She pushed past him, clearly ignoring the fact he was wearing only night pants and a loose tee, and walked straight to his chairs and coffee table. Len headed straight to the replicator but checked himself, when he remembered that the replicators had been disabled.
He turned back to the coffee table and had to grin a little. Liv had been hiding a travel thermos and two plastic mugs in her pile of PADDs. He settled down beside her and helped himself to the coffee, pouring it into both mugs and setting one in front of her. She nodded absently in thanks, hardly paying attention as she flipped through PADDs. Finally she handed him one… well thrust it into hand hands.
"That is documentation on the London Defense Labs. They had a strain of Hemorrhagic Small Pox set aside for weaponizing. They're the only lab I would find that had it and didn't have proof of it's destruction at the end of the twenty first century when all bio-weaponry was supposed to be destroyed."
Liv spoke quickly, almost too fast to follow. But Len was used to Jim and his tirades so he was one of the few who could have possibly followed her mini speech. He looked at the PADD but decided to take her word for it.
Liv thrust another at him as he set it aside. "THAT is proof that the LDL fell into the hands of British terrorists that were against the creation of a truly powerful Global Political system in the early twenty second century. They never used what they had though as their leader died before they could and they dissolved into rivaling families vying for control and power."
Len set the PADD aside, and took a swallow of the coffee. "This proves nothing Liv." He said simply, if a little sternly. It was late and at least she should sleep…
"But THIS does." She thrust yet another PADD at him. "THAT is information that, could it be tracked to me, might get me killed. That is what I hacked from LDL's still running computers."
Len hesitated. "Still running computers?" He asked. If they'd been shut down, like the official paperwork claims then the computers should have been decommissioned and the data destroyed…
Liv nodded, her expression grim. "Look at the file 00203." Len did as she bid and nearly dropped his coffee. The exact virus he'd found in his patients glowed up at him from the screen. "That is the weaponized form of Hemorrhagic Small Pox, attempt 243." Len read through the information that was below the picture. It listed the symptoms and transmission vectors.
"It's an exact match." He murmured. "Good Lord, you're right." He shut down the file, filled with disgust, and looked up at her. "Tell me they created a cure."
Liv shook her head. "Not a viable one." She waved another two PADDs at him but didn't hand them over. "This is the data on their failed antidotes. There are actually a few promising ones, I think."
Len felt a wave of relief so powerful he had to relax back into his chair. "So we might stand a chance." He said softly. "Thank the Lord." He leaned forward, caught Liv's arms, and drew her to him. He kissed her forehead. "Woman I don't know what I'd do without you." He said, driven by his relief.
She smiled cheekily at him as he released her. "Go insane and kill everyone yourself?"
"Naw," he murmured, "just Jim." He hesitated and then added, "and Spock." And a moment later, after a little more thought he added, "And the beta and gamma shift doctors, and their PA's…" Liv just grinned. "Go to bed. "He scolded. "We've got to get started on this tomorrow, bright and early."
She yawned and nodded, leaving the PADDs with him, which was exactly what he wanted. "Okay, but I'm going to check on Pavel on my way." Len didn't argue, knowing she'd just disobey him if he told her not to. Yet another Kirk trait, selective hearing when it comes to orders, no matter the source.
Liv slid into Pavel's rooms. His one roommate was in the isolation rooms in Sick Bay, having been one of the second group to fall ill, just at the end of April, so she didn't have to stay quiet for the sake of anyone but her younger friend. She settled onto the edge of his lower bunk and brushed the tangled, sweat matted curls from his forehead. "Don't worry Pavel." She whispered. "I'm going to save you. We've figured it out, we know what it is now."
"Liwie?" He croaked, his eyes opening a little to peer up at her in the near blackness.
"Yea, it's me Pavel." She said gently.
"I am so cold." He complained, softly, shivering. It was a normal sign of a fever so it didn't worry Liv much. He wasn't worsening yet. "Stay wif me?" He asked.
Were he anyone else, except Jim, Liv would have slid to a chair or made an excuse; instead she slid to lay beside the boy who was about her height. He cuddled to her and she allowed it. "You'll be alright." She promised again. "I know what it is, and I'm going to make you a cure."
"I beliewe in you." He whispered before he dropped back off to sleep.
An extinct and genetically altered virus that is lethal to all but maybe 1% of those infected. With no cure, no vaccine, and a crewman on board deliberately making others sick… And I'm promising you a cure. She sighed and put her chin on the top of his head. At least one of us really believes in me. She thought pessimistically.
May 12th 0659 Hours
Liv walked into the bioengineering lab earlier than Len expected. In her hands she carried two huge mugs of coffee but her lips were compressed into a fine, fine line. "Somethin' wrong darlin'?" He asked gently, taking the mug she offered him.
"Pavel." She answered, turning her back to him to stare at the chemical equation of a possible cure for the virus.
Len didn't press. The boy had been sick for four days. Liv's distress was probably stemmed from the boy's eyes turning red as the small vessels burst. He walked closer to her and tapped the formula. "I still think this could be better. I don't think it'll bind to the virus."
Liv shrugged. "You're probably right." Her enthusiasm at having finally identified the disease (and proving him wrong) had dried up, leaving her as snarky as he was. They were both feeling the strain of the pressure they were under.
Len walked from her side to the culture dishes in a growth chamber. He eyed them, hoping one might show a change, that one of the synthetic antibodies was working. There were no changes from the day before. With a huff he turned and looked at Liv.
The bags under her eyes were darker than he'd ever seen them, they looked like bruises though he knew better. She was pale, looking more delicate than usual, and she'd stopped bothering with make-up. He still thought she was beautiful, she always would be to him, but he knew she was running herself ragged. And he knew he was little better.
Four hours of sleep last night. Less the night Liv showed me all that data. There's just so much to go through. It took them months to rule out the few dozen cures LDL created. We have less than two weeks or everyone who's currently sick will be dead and God knows how many more will be on the way.
Liv frowned at the equation, took a dry-erase marker, and drew another bond between a pair of atoms. She nodded to herself and her eyes drifted to another part of the molecule. The doors whooshed open.
Len looked up to see Jim walk in. He looked nearly as bad as Liv. "Nothing on the background checks for either Laura, Lily, or Scotty. Problem is all of them are from the UK area so they all had access."
Liv huffed but said nothing. Len knew she was just frustrated, frustrated that nothing was changing, that there was no movement, and that as each day passed she got closer and closer to having failed Pavel. No, He thought, the closer WE've come to failing that kid.
Jim opened his mouth to say more when the comm. interrupted him. "Doctor McCoy, Liv, to Sick Bay immediately." Chapel's voice ordered sharply.
Liv closed her eyes in desperation. "Not another one." She whispered as they took of at a run, leaving their coffee and locking the room with the EMCs. No one was getting in there.
They reached Sick Bay only a minute later, they were on the same level just the other side of the ship. Jim, being the fittest of the three of them, was the first to reach the doors. Of course the kid also stopped as soon as he entered Sick Bay, making Liv turn suddenly to miss running into him. Len was less lucky. He collided with the back of his Captain and friend with an 'oof'.
Len shoved the younger man and glared. "Don't do that you idiot." He informed his friend with a very superior tone. Then he looked to see what had shocked the Captain so much.
"'Ello." Scotty said with a little wave from the biobed. "Yeh can't keep me," he babbled before Len could get to examine him. "I'm here 'cause Galia begged. I'm fine and Engineering is understaffed as it is…" He stood up but wavered.
Len caught him and then bodily pushed him back onto the biobed. "Sit your ass down, Mr. Scott, and let me take a look at you."
"I'm not staying in my room like an invalid. I can work like this." He argued, struggling. "Knowing I'm dying won't fix anything."
Len growled wordlessly at his friend and drinking buddy, trying to think of something to say that would make the stubborn man stay.
"Wha? Ouch!" Scotty swatted at a pale, thin hand holding a hypospray before he slumped backward, onto the biobed, unconscious.
Len looked at Liv who shrugged. "Works for you with Jimmy. I thought I'd give it a try."
Jim laughed from behind them, it sounded bitter to Len, but a laugh none-the-less. "Liv you've been around him too long."
Len remembered his ex-wife saying something similar, though he had to clue why the memory chose that moment to surface. "Len, when we first met I loved you. But I've been around you too long, now I know better."
Liv sniffed. "I'm not so sure there is an amount of time that would be too long to be around Len, Jimmy." Len's heart felt a little lighter. "Go back to the bridge and try to keep this ship afloat until we get Scotty back onto his feet." Ignoring his emotional fickleness Len focused on the task at hand, Scotty.
May 13th 2345 Hours
Liv was exhausted. Her whole body was all but shaking with caffeine withdrawls and her head ached. I really should sleep more. She thought to herself absently, uncaringly. She knew she wouldn't, not until she found a cure, not until Pavel, Scotty, and all the others were well on their way to being perfectly healthy again. Eh, I'll sleep when I'm dead. Or when I do finish this, then I'll sleep for a week. After all, how could she even think of sleeping? Three of the engineers had died the day before and two over the course of the current day. Five dead in less than forty eight hours… Those who are in less than perfect shape, especially the older patients, are dying faster, their bodies can't handle it.
A soft sound on her right almost didn't register, a monotonous beeping. An alarm. Not to wake someone up but to say a grate was open to the plasma conduits crawl space. Huh. She thought. No one's supposed to be playing with those tonight… If fact no one was supposed to be playing with the energy system until the whole mess was sorted out and everyone was healthy again, on the off chance the Sick Bay lost power thanks to an error when it needed it the most.
I'll just tell them to get their asses back to bed. She thought, opening the door that the sound was coming from, using Jimmy's codes. It opened to the shared quarters of three women. No one was in sight but it was obvious it belonged to women because it was cleaner than any three men could keep it. Why is someone mucking about in power conduit crawl spaces in the middle of the night, and accessing said conduits from their bedroom?
Something about the whole situation made the hairs on the back on Liv's neck stand on end. It wasn't right. The sleepiness that had clouded her mind burned off with the fire of her adrenaline. Something is wrong here.
So, being a Kirk, Liv did what any good Kirk would do in the situation; poke around to see what was what. She started on the far bunk. Like all three person rooms each bed was lofted and a small personal desk and chair sat under the bunk. Nothing amiss, bed made… She began rifling through the drawers at the foot of the bunk.
Nothing.
She moved on. The bunk in the middle of the room was just as well-made and unused. Why are the beds not slept in? Where are these women? Liv wondered. The items on the desk gave no indication as to who was supposed to sleep there, it was regulation neat, with no personal touches, not even pictures. There was nothing to be found. No locked drawers, no hidden catches… Nothing.
Liv turned to the last bunk. It was un-made, it looked like someone slept in it for a bit before going on the little crawl-about around the ship. The grate that belonged in the ceiling lay on the bed's covers. But is it worth checking? She wondered. I've found nothing suspicious so far… I'm digging through someone's privacy…
She remembered the once pale blue, now blood red eyes that had peered out at her from a pale, sweat-covered face. Pavel was on the line. Was someone's privacy, should this be an innocent lovers tryst or something similar, worth Pavel's life? No.
Liv headed to the desk first. The PADDs were regulation, they had engineering data on them. The top drawer was unlocked and stuffed with a paper notebook and pencils. Old fashioned much? It looked like a diary. So NOT going there unless I find something else. Liv thought a little guiltily. The second drawer had personal PADDs, books, letters from friends and family, a box of chocolates hidden under the PADDs.
Liv tried the third drawer. It opened with no effort. Empty.
She moved to the dresser. Nothing but clothing. I'm paranoid. Liv thought as she stood and turned. At the door she hesitated. That third drawer… something was off about it. Turning back Liv opened it again. Empty, still. Undeterred Liv went to the middle bunk's desk and opened the bottom drawer. It wasn't empty. Why does this look larger? Liv wondered. HA! Brilliant, a false bottom! There was a scraping sound and a soft thump from behind her.
Whirling around Liv came face to face with… Lily. The pretty, young Englishwoman held in her hand a spray can. Her eyes widened as they recognized Liv and her face twisted into a scowl. "Damn it Liv, couldn't you just leave well enough alone?"
Before Liv's mind could quite reconcile that Lily - sweet, kind Lily - was the person infecting and KILLING crewmembers, Lily punched her in the stomach, sending her stumbling backward, into the middle bunk.
Her head hit the wood and her field of vision exploded into stars. Liv stumbled to her feet. "Lily no!"
But Lily had already pulled open her lowest desk drawer and removed the false bottom. Liv lunged forward, wondering what the girl was going for in the desk, she was too low rank to have a personal phaser. Lily turned just as Liv reached her and Liv felt a sharp, painful pressure in her stomach. She glanced down. A needle had pushed through her shirt and stuck into her stomach. The archaic syringe plunger was pushed all the way in.
Liv hit Lily's jaw with a right hook hard enough to make her own hand crack as bone snapped. Lily reeled. "What the FUCK was that?!" Liv yelled, pulling the needle out with her left hand lest it be broken off into her in the scuffle.
"What do you think?" Lily asked, laughing. "Ingestion is the only means of transmission, unless you get it injected directly into you."
Liv threw another punch, an upper cut. "Computer, place and emergency call to Captain Kirk and…" Lily kicked her stomach and Liv faltered, the wind knocked out of her. "Doctor McCoy." She stammered, drawing a pained breath. "They need to get to my location, NOW!"
Liv caught sight of Lily lunging at her just in the nick of time. She twisted away and felt a burning across her back, one she knew all too well. Turning Liv saw that her blood gleamed off a shining blade in Lily's hands.
"The Pox and a knife?" Liv panted. "Overkill much?"
Lily didn't answer, she just lunged again. Liv caught her wrists and they grappled, fighting over control of the blade. Lily knocked Liv's legs out from under her but Liv pulled her down too, rolling and twisting Lily's hands as she did.
In a split second Lily cried out as her wrists snapped and her back his the floor. And then she was oddly silent and still. Liv looked down and realized she held the knife in her hands, the blade was imbedded in Lily's chest. The doors whooshed open.
"LIV!" Len's voice was incredibly welcome and two pairs of hands pulled her up, off Lily's either dead or dying body. "Darlin' you idiot!" He snapped at her, holding her to his chest ad Jim checked Lily.
"Don't bother," Liv muttered to her twin, "she's dead."
"Better her than you." Len growled, his arms tightened around her. "You're an idiot, you should have called for help immediately!"
Liv snorted. "Her drawer, check her drawer," she pointed at it since Len didn't seem inclined to let go of her.
Jim did and lifted out four more aerosol cans and two bags of a pale yellow liquid. "What the hell?" Jim muttered.
Len released Liv and took the bags from Jim. "Vaccine," He breathed, the worry lines on his face easing, "Thank the Lord. There's a vaccine."
"But no cure," Liv murmured, realization hitting her. I'm going to die… oh God. I'm dead.
"With a vaccine we can prevent more from getting sick though." Jim sighed. "Just incase she wasn't working alone."
"Jim," Liv muttered, another light bulb going off in her head as the adrenaline slowly fled her body. "Jim make a crew wide call, no one eats or drinks anything, even if they made or poured it recently. She had an empty can."
Jim nodded and went running out of the room, probably heading for the comm. console in the hall. Liv swayed on her feet. As the rest of the adrenaline burned off her body began to give out. "Liv?" Len asked, his warm hand catching her elbow.
"Just tired." She lied.
She could see his eyes narrow at her, focusing on her face. "You're pale, darlin'. Why are you so pale?" Liv said nothing, but her eyes – of their own volition – focused on the syringe that lay on the floor, kicked aside in the scuffle. Len must have followed her gaze because moments later he'd released her and scooped it up.
"No!" Liv gasped. "Len careful! It's the virus."
He spun to look at her quickly just as the door whooshed open. "Who was injected?" He asked in a deadly whisper. Liv said nothing as a wave of dizziness hit her. "WHO was injected?!" Len yelled, making her jump.
Finally she lifted her eyes to his. He wasn't angry, she knew he wasn't angry, he was worried. "Me," she whispered, "she infected me." And then the world, which had fallen completely out of focus, went black.