Chapter 7
Coniecturalem artem esse medicinam.
Medicine is the art of guessing.
(Aulus Cornelius Celsus, De medicina)

Julian Bashir looked over the new surveillance reports. There was a picture from Rigalia IV
of a female Bajoran engineer who looked very familiar. She had strawberry-blonde hair
pulled back into two braids and brilliant green eyes. There was something about her that
reminded him of someone. He shrugged and took a sip of his tea. Despite the massive
amount of caffeine he had consumed in the past few hours, his body was begging for
sleep. He yawned and glanced over at a near biobed. It seemed to be calling to him.
Might as well, I'm not getting anything done anyway. He went over the biobed and
within minutes, was sound asleep.

"Julian, hurry up!" Vicki Ann called. They were hiking on Mount Etherithius on Chelsa VII.
He'd never seen a more beautiful landscape. He was glad that Vicki Ann had talked him
into trying this program. The only problem was, he kept stopping to admire the view and
she grew impatient and went on ahead. She had already reached the top and was facing
him, her hands on her hips, an irritated look on her face. She was dressed for the
occasion, her hair was pulled back in two braids and she was wearing khaki shorts and a
sapphire blue tank top that matched her eyes. "You are the slowest person I know."

Julian took a deep breath and smiled. The air here was absolutely heavenly. It rained
almost every night here, so it always smelled of rain mixed with the various plants in the
area. "I'm not usually this slow. I just can't get over how beautiful it is here. The name is
absolutely perfect."

"What do you mean?" Vicki Ann asked, her forehead wrinkled with confusion.

He loved how he could read her emotions just by her expression.
Not that she gave a lot away usually, he just knew her that well. He knew that she was
absolutely clueless as to what he was talking about. He walked the rest of the way up to
her. "The name means 'Heaven's door.' And this place definitely is heaven," he replied.

Vicki Ann smiled. "You're right. This place is beautiful."

"Just like you," Julian replied, kissing her. For the next few minutes, they forgot the beauty
of the landscape and were totally wrapped up in each other. Finally, Vicki Ann pulled
away.

"Julian," she scolded. "We came here to hike, not to kiss."

"Well," he replied, smiling. "We're at the top. Don't we deserve a break?"

"Going down the mountain is easier than going up."

"I know, but it's so beautiful up here. Why don't we watch the sunset?"

"Okay," Vicki Ann replied, smiling. "You won over the romantic in me."

They sat down on a rock a few feet away from the edge of the cliff. Julian slid his arm
around her and she laid his head on his shoulder. As the sun set over the jade-colored
ocean below, Julian realized just how lucky he was to have Vicki Ann in his life.

Julian awoke with a start. "Thank you, Ezri!" he shouted to the empty infirmary. Now he
remembered why that woman looked familiar. She looked like Vicki Ann. He ran over to the
computer console. He called up the picture from Rigalia IV and beside it, one of Vicki Ann.
"Computer, remove the Bajoran markings from picture A." The computer altered the
picture. "So far so good. Computer, alter hair color of picture A to match that of picture
B."

The computer obeyed and replied, "There is a .2% possibility of error."

Julian smiled. "I like those odds. Now, alter the eye color to sapphire blue."

The computer obeyed and replied, "There is a 1% possibility or error."

"I still like those odds." He tapped his comm badge. "Bashir to Kira. I may have found Vicki
Ann."

Vicki Ann walked out of the Constable's office. The power couplings were going to be put
in her shuttle and a 'unknown' burglar was going to steal that night. The burglar was a
member of Section 31 and was going to take them back to the station where she had
been held.

As for her, she was going to Earth to meet with someone about some phase emitters. She
had no idea what Sid was going to do with the emitters, she was just following orders. As
she walked out into the square, she decided to get some dinner before she went back to
her hotel. She spotted a caf‚ across the street and walked toward it.

"If she really is in Section 31, which we can guess by her altered appearance, she'll
probably avoid Starfleet officers," Kira told Bashir over the comm link in the shuttle.

Ezri nodded. "I agree. We should wear civilian clothing when approaching her."

Julian shook his head. "I really don't think that'll work. I think we're going to have to catch
her by surprise."

"What do you mean?" Ezri asked.

"Just follow my lead," Julian replied.

Kira frowned. "Do what you have to, doctor, just don't cause any trouble."

Vicki Ann walked out of the caf‚ and began to walk back to her hotel. It was dark by now,
but the phaser at her side made her feel safe. She never thought that she'd feel this way,
but if anyone knew who she was or who she was with, she could be in danger. She had
managed to avoid all the Starfleet officers she saw. She enjoyed the walk back, breathing
in the cool, night air and reveling in the quiet that had fallen over the city. She smiled at
the people in the lobby of the hotel and went up to her room. Just as she was keying in
her room code, she thought she heard someone come up behind her. She went to turn,
but heard the hiss of a hypospray against her neck and all went black.

Vicki Ann was awake, but was afraid to open her eyes. She was thought that someone
had figured out who she was and was going to interrogate her. She listened to the sounds
of the room around ger. Something was familiar about the sounds. She heard voices.
Familiar ones. One especially. They sounded safe. The voices didn't talk about Romulan
memory probes or any other interrogation devices. Instead, they talked about recovery
after high exposure to tricolate and dethacol. She decided to open her eyes. Bright light
greeted her eyes and she flinched. She gathered up the strength to get past her fear and
glance around the room. She was in an infirmary. She sat up and gasped when she realized
where she was. She was back on DS9.

Julian turned away from his conversation with Kira and Ezri and checked his patient. When
he saw that she was sitting up, he smiled and went over to her. "I'm glad to see you're
awake. How are you feeling?"

Oh my God, I have to be dreaming! Vicki Ann thought to herself. Or hallucinating.
Either way, I'm in trouble. Dwelling on Julian's death will prevent me from fulfilling my duties
as a member of Section 31. She pinched herself. No such luck. I must be hallucinating.
She closed her eyes. Julian is dead. He is not here.

Julian is dead. When I open my eyes, he'll be gone. She opened her eyes. He was still
there. I'm worse off than I thought. She began to cry.

Julian watched Vicki Ann. She'd seemed frightened of him when he came over. She closed
her eyes and repeated something to herself, almost as if she was trying to convince
herself of something. When she opened her eyes, she still looked frightened and she began
to cry. He put his hand on her shoulder. "It's alright, Vicki Ann. You're safe now."

She jerked away from him. "Get away from me! Better yet, go away! You aren't real!
You're just my imagination!"

Julian was confused. "Vicki Ann, what are you talking about? I'm right here, in front of
you." She was starting to scare him. She was ranting and raving like a lunatic and her
eyes blazed with terror.

Ezri walked over to Julian and put her hand on his shoulder. "She seems to be upset by
your presence. Maybe you should leave."

Julian looked a her, a pained expression in his eyes. He wanted to help his friend and her
condition was breaking his heart. "Perhaps you're right." He walked back to his office.

Ezri went over to her friend. "Vicki Ann, it's all right. Julian's gone."

Vicki Ann looked up. "Ezri?"

Ezri nodded. "Yes."

Vicki Ann embraced her friend. "Oh, Ezri, I'm so sorry. I didn't have a choice. They said if I
didn't do it, they would hurt me.

I was afraid they'd go after Deanna or mother. I didn't want to hurt him, but they made
me do it."

"Hurt who, Vicki Ann? Who did they make you hurt?"

"Julian," Vicki Ann whispered.

Ezri glanced across the room at Julian. So that explains why she's afraid of him. She
thinks he'll be mad at her for whatever she thinks she did to him. Ezri pulled away from
Vicki Ann and looked her in the face. "Vicki Ann, how did you hurt Julian?"

"I gave him 10 cc's of tetraline. It shut down the heart and the supply of oxygen to the
brain. He was dead within minutes."

Ezri gasped. What did they do to her? She thinks that she killed Julian. "Vicki Ann,
Julian's fine. He's right over there."

"No, Ezri. He can't be! I was there. I killed him!"

"No, you didn't, Vicki Ann."

"Yes, I did!"

Vicki Ann was crying hysterically by now. Julian couldn't bear to watch it. He snuck up
behind her and nailed her with a hypospray of a very powerful sedative. She would be out
cold for a few hours. As Vicki Ann fell back onto the bed, Julian heaved a sigh of relief. He
felt that his own face was wet with tears, which he quickly brushed away. He looked over
at Ezri, who looked as ashen as he did. "God, Ezri. What are we going to do? There's so
much damage to her brain from the drugs that I don't know if I can fix it. If I can't, she'll
be like this forever."

Ezri put Julian's hand in hers. "I'm sure you can do it, Julian. As for the rest, how would
you feel about avoiding her when I come for counseling sessions?"

Julian nodded. "That's a good idea. How about giving her a tranquilizer before each
session, so this doesn't happen again?"

"That's fine with me. How long will she be out from the sedative?"

"About four hours."

"Alright. I'll come back then. And I suggest you get your dinner around that time."

Dr. Julian Bashir looked at the medical logs in front of him for the hundredth time.
Something just didn't seem right. They were from the Enterprise and they didn't fit. While
they were at Utopia Planitia for repairs, Vicki Ann made a visit to Starfleet Medical. While
she was there, she was treated for a sprained ankle and a concussion. A few days after
she was there, she underwent a series of tests due to the fact that she fainted. Nothing
was found in her system and the doctor wrote it off as undernourishment. A few weeks
later, while back on the Enterprise, she fainted again. Dr. Crusher scanned her and found
nothing. Fainting is a early side effect of exposure to tricolate and dethacol. He continued
through the logs and found that Dr. Crusher had ordered anyone with a rare blood type to
give blood before the Enterprise entered the war, for precautions sake. Vicki Ann was type
AB negative. Thank goodness the repairs are taking longer than normal.
With all the ships docked for repairs, it was no wonder. Julian smiled to himself and ran out
of the infirmary.

Dr. Beverly Crusher was cleaning up sickbay. She was finished for the day and wanted to
go down to the station to see Vicki Ann. Lt. Dax had sent the senior staff a message when
they had found Vicki Ann. From Dax's reports, Vicki Ann's condition didn't sound very good.
Deanna had already gone down to the station with Riker. They had suggested that she
and the captain come down later. Beverly shook her head sadly. She had figured that Vicki
Ann would be leaving for her own CMO position soon, not because she was losing her mind.

Lt. Commander Data was walking down the corridor to sickbay. He had some tricorders for
Dr. Crusher that she had asked him to modify. He heard someone running behind him and
turned to see who it was. It was Dr. Bashir. "Hello, doctor. What are you doing on the
Enterprise?"

Bashir stopped at the doors to sickbay to catch his breath. "I'm here. . .to see. . . Dr.
Crusher."

"Why are you running? Is everything alright? Do you need assistance?"

Bashir smiled. "I'm fine, Data. I'm here about Vicki Ann."

Data nodded. "It is tragic that such a promising officer was not only kicked out of
Starfleet, but has now fallen so ill."

"Well, I might have found something to help her case, but I need to see Dr. Crusher. Care
to accompany me?"

Data nodded. "I was just on my way to see her myself."

The doors to sickbay opened and Dr. Crusher looked up. Data had entered, along with Dr.
Bashir. Beverly went over to them. "Julian,"
she said, taking Bashir's hand. "It's so good to see you. I just wish it could be under better
circumstances."

Bashir nodded. "It's good to see you too, doctor."

Beverly laughed. "You don't have to be so formal! Call me Beverly. Any friend of Vicki Ann's
is a friend of mine! Is there something I can do for you?"

"Actually yes," Bashir replied. "I was checking your logs to see if there was anything that
would help Vicki Ann, when I noticed that before the Enterprise entered the war, you
asked everyone with rare blood types to give blood."

Beverly nodded. "Yes, I did. I figured that if we were in battle, the replicator power would
be put to better use somewhere else."

"I need Vicki Ann's sample."

"Sure, Julian, but why?"

"Just call it a hunch, but I think she was given tricolate and dethacol at Starfleet Medical."

"What?"

"She fainted after she was treated for her broken ankle and concussion and she fainted
when she came back here."

"Yes, but neither I nor Starfleet medical found anything in her system."

"Was she unconscious at any time during her time at Starfleet Medical?"

Beverly thought for a moment. "Yes, she was. When she fell in engineering, sickbay was
under repairs, so we had her beamed to Starfleet Medical. She was unconscious for an
hour or so. Why?"

"There might be something inside her that is blocking our scans."

"You mean like an implant?" Data suggested.

"Exactly," Julian said, nodding.

"Defiantly a hunch, but a good one. Come on, let's check that blood sample," Beverly
replied.