Chapter 33

Captain Spock stepped into the turbo lift and ordered it to take him to deck five where the sick bay was situated. Slowly the small transportation unit glided down then picked up speed as it moved side ways then back down again. Finally it came to a halt and the doors opened in front of him.

Spock stepped out into a deserted corridor. The sickbay wasn't too far from the lift so he only stepped a few paces until the large entrance foyer could be seen.

He stepped through. There was a large potted plant just inside the archway. Facing it was a frosted window. In front of the window was a pair of russet coloured, softly padded square shape seats. Directly next to the window was a large beige automatic door.

The Vulcan approached the door and it slid open with a gush of cool expelled air. He stepped into the large main reception area of the bay.

The waiting area was brightly lit with soft peach walls and framed decorative abstract paintings. Also there were several different plants from various worlds and more of those seats, which had been in the entrance except they were cream and had russet cushions thrown here and there.

This bay was completely different compared to any others on Federation ships he had visited. Spock assumed that this was a new design. Designed for comfort as well as productivity. It reminded him of hospitals he had seen on the planet Earth.

The Starship Nova herself was a large brand new ship equipped with top of the range equipment. There consisted of more than three science stations on the main bridge and more sensitive scanning equipment.

The top safest warp capability had risen up to warp eight. Until that time the safest flight proficiency had been warp six and hadn't changed in more than thirty years.

Spock headed over to an adequately sized reception desk where a nurse dressed in a white medical uniform was working on her computer. She glanced up from her work and smiled at him pleasantly.

"Hello Captain Spock," she said informally. "What may I do for you?"

"I have come to see Doctor Berger," he said in polished English. If anyone had not known that English was his second language they would have been surprised because he superbly replicated a subtle American accent to go with it.

In fact Spock could have reproduced any accent he wished to go with the language he was speaking at the time. He was fluent in various other terminology from additional far off worlds, but it was most important that he could speak the international language, English.

He had actually started to learn to speak Klingon as well. With speaking alien languages perfectly, this put him to an advantage in his diplomatic work for the Federation.

"Please wait for a moment," said the nurse looking down at the screen on the desk. She shook her shoulder length blond hair off her face then keyed in something that Spock couldn't distinguish. "I'll let him know your here," she said after a short time.

Spock nodded and folded his hands neatly in front of him. "Perhaps you would care to take a seat, it shouldn't take long." The Vulcan complied and sat down on the edge of a nearby seat. The nurse opened up an internal link to the doctor's office. Spock's finely tuned ears picked up sections of the quiet conversation.

"Send him on through," said the doctor's voice. The nurse cut off the intercom transmission and glanced over at Spock who was watching some ornamental cold water fish swimming around in a large brightly lit tank.

"Doctor Berger will see you now," the nurse said interrupting his concentration on the fish. Spock rose and followed her to the doors just next to the main reception desk area. They opened before him. "The doctor will come and meet you sir."

"Thank you," he replied and passed through just inside the doorway. As the nurse had promised Eric Berger was waiting on the other side. His borrowed office wasn't far away from the entrance. Spock gathered that Berger had just stepped out from some intricate job he was working on that need his full attention, judging from the cranky expression on his face.

"Hello Captain. I wanted to see you. You're a bit early, but you might as well come on through," said the physician. Spock followed him into the examining room.

"I was not aware that a specific time was allocated. Saavik did not say-"

"Never mind," muttered the doctor.

The examination room was spacious. Standing against one wall was a special bed, which was rigged up with various unfamiliar equipment. At the other side was a device that looked like something that would have been at home in old medieval torture chamber.

"Please take a seat," the doctor said. Spock sat down in the one chair that was in the room. "How are you feeling today?" He questioned.

"I am adequate," Spock said. The doctor nodded thoughtfully.

"Good. You were in a pretty poor state yesterday. We thought you wouldn't make it. Are you eating okay?"

"Yes," said Spock. The doctor jotted something down onto his stylus pad.

"I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you a few questions," he said. Spock remained rigid in his chair and his expression did not waver.

"Proceed," he said quietly.

"Have you been experiencing nausea, headaches, muscle pain, spasms, confusion, dizziness, disorientation, difficulty inhaling, exhaling, tiredness?"

"None of the above," Spock said dispassionately.

"That is commendable. I'm sorry for this interrogation, but it is necessary. Now I want to do a few tests on you. They won't hurt." Spock remained stone faced. He wondered why doctors always said that phrase. Medical tests were always combined with something that usually either caused discomfort or pain.

"Would you please step over here and remove your jacket." Spock did so, then neatly folded the garment and placed it on the back of the chair. The doctor tried to suppress a chuckle, but it escaped.

"What?" Asked Spock when the doctor abruptly managed to straighten his face.

"Oh nothing," he said. "Just that you would probably make an excellent valet."

Spock stepped onto a small round platform. The doctor took some electrodes and attached them to Spock's head. Another on the inside of his arm and three on his torso.

"Right," Berger said. "This devise will test your heart, blood pressure, brain waves, pulse, and respiratory functions. It's a simple test. It will create a small percentage of energy cadence which tricks the body into thinking it's doing a work out."

Berger cleared his throat noisily. "Now, I'm going to have to insert a small needle into your arm. You will be injected with a small amount of Adrel Compound. It'll give you a burst of energy for around ten minutes. You won't be too bad, but it'll feel a bit uncomfortable. Are you ready?"

"Yes doctor. I have undergone this process before." The doctor nodded.

"That is good. Then you know what to be expecting." Spock vividly remembered the occasion. It was also necessary to undergo the procedure every six months while space bound. Sometimes space could give people a false sense of perfect health so full medicals like these were necessary. Mostly everyone hated them. Including Spock.

This type of test only came around in the past thirty-five years and it was the most gruelling of all medicals. Spock had guessed he would be tested with this because of his previous illness. Pon Farr really could exhaust the body as well as the mind. He also assumed that next he would have to undertake a memory and psychological test.

"The purpose of the experiment now is to see how well you have recovered from your...illness and if you need any medication and so forth. Give me your arm."

Spock felt the chilled sensation of a tiny hypo needle injecting the chemical into his blood stream and he waited for the unfortunate profound physical and mental acceleration, which would be administered by the drug when it entered his brain.

Berger keyed in his password and the device powered up. Spock waited until finally he felt the need to run. The devise compensated the need by tricking Spock's body that it was already running as fast as he could. On the computer screen it displayed and evaluated the response. His heart was picking up speed and breathing was becoming laboured.

"Keep it up for ten minutes," said the doctor. Berger turned away and looked down at the readout on the computer. "Your doing fine."

Finally the exhausting ten minutes were up; the doctor tore off the pads connected to Spock's skin. He stepped down from the torture device and appeared completely unfazed by the whole process.

"Right, next. Please lay down over there," he said pointing to the bed. "I'm just going to perform a little scan. The scanning device appeared to be a similar version to the old fashion scanners of the early twenty-two seventies to the mid twenty-two eighties. Spock lies down. "Hold very still." Said Berger cheerfully.

He activated a beam of pale blue light, which bathed Spock's entire body for a number of seconds.

At the side of the bed stood a large shiny black screen that covered an entire wall right up to the ceiling. The screen displayed nothing. In fact all it was used for was to shelter the energy away from the patient and doctor and absorb it into itself. Thus recording the information it had just scanned.

The results would be absorbed into the screen and relayed into the computer. The information then would be processed and displayed on a small monitor for the doctor's convenience.

"You can sit up now. The last test," he smiled. "I promise you." Spock glanced begrudgingly at the psycho analyser in the corner of the room.

Spock sat down on a chair, which was situated in a small alcove. Berger attached two silver reception chips on Spock's forehead. Hovering above his head was a large transparent bowl containing a circuit board with three protruding needlepoint's facing down?

There were numerous little lights flashing in a complicated patterned order. The doctor placed two other small electrode patches on the Vulcan's temples.

"Okay. I want you to clear your mind." Berger stepped away. Spock tried to hide a shudder. These psyche tests were the cruellest medical tests anyone could put a Vulcan through. It required the person to remove all shields and mental control so that the machinery could probe the unfortunate victim's psyche for any abnormal anomalies and changes.

It usually took a Vulcan a good fifteen minutes to condition oneself for the probe or possibly even longer. For Spock it had taken him twenty minutes and fifteen seconds. It was a some what annoying and an actually quite apprehensive process.

The doctor activated the computer station and monitored the results of the test, which was displayed before him on a small square screen.

Spock still hadn't completely regained control of his mind since the blood fever and he could still feel the residue from Saavik's consciousness within his own. The psyche test would undoubtedly pick it up.

He felt his mind being probed by an invisible electronic force. Spock gripped the arms of his chair and struggled to remain passive. Despite it all he managed to stay completely cool.

Finally the test was completed and Spock could establish his mental control and disciplines once more. The doctor removed the pads off his temples and forehead.

A nurse arrived with a hypo spray.

"I'm just going to take a sample of blood," said the doctor. "Nurse?"

She fixed on an empty container then pressed the spray on Spock's arm. It hissed and expelled green blood.

"I tested Saavik," said Berger referring to the hypo. "Hopefully you will come up with the same results. Nurse please tests for Pentor virus." She left.

"You can get dressed now," said the doctor. He loaded the results of the tests onto a translucent green diskette. Spock pulled the jacket back on and hurriedly fastened it.

"Would you like to come with me into the office?" Said the doctor. The information was recorded onto the disk and Berger took it out of the drive system on the computer. "We must talk."

"Have you found disquieting results?"

"We'll talk about it privately." He said.

Spock joined the doctor in his office. It was an inadequately spaced room decorated in soft shades of cream. On the right hand side there was a clear transparent window. Beside stood a chair. In front of the window there was a shelf containing ancient medical equipment. On the wall there was a picture of a cottage.

The doctor rounded his desk then sat on the corner of it. Spock sat facing him on the chair next the window/cabinet.

Berger inserted the disk into the slot on his medical computer then he stood up again. It took the computer a short moment before the information was loaded and could be displayed. The doctor moved the monitor so Spock could see the screen.

"The first test was pretty good. You are in fairly good health, but there is a slight discrepancy concerning your respiratory organs. Don't panic though. It's not serious at the moment, but I believe you have caught Zajorin Fever."

"Me," Spock said rather surprised. He straightened in his chair.

"It's rather contagious. Once one person has it, it travels from Vulcan to Vulcan no matter what. It is contracted due to a bad response to damp heavy air on highly polluted planets." He said repeating what he had already told Saavik. "Namely Droline V. The body's immune system does not know how too deal with the problem. The lungs know they should combat the problem, but doesn't know how to do it.

"The bug then enters the blood supply, then you get lots of horrible side effects such as difficulty in breathing, high fever or even in rare cases vomiting."

The doctor continued. "Because your respiratory system doesn't know how to cope with those kinds of bugs since the atmosphere of your planet is very dry and thin, you people don't have the defences to fight it. So your need a little help."

"Yes I know. Saavik told me she has it too," Spock said. "I however did not know that the condition was contagious."

"That's why I declared her unfit for duty. You make sure she follows orders otherwise she'll be down here so fast Saavik won't know what hit her."

"What is the treatment?" Spock asked.

"Treatment will start a few days after the fever develops. Unfortunately treating before symptoms doesn't work. We tried it."

"I see," said Spock.

"You're ordered to rest. Go on vacation, but not on Vulcan because otherwise we'll have an epidemic on our hands."

"Very well," said Spock.

"But you must let me know where you're going to. Make it nowhere near fellow Vulcans."

"Obviously," said Spock with a raised brow.

"Good," said the doctor. Just then the nurse returned and handed the results to the doctor. He glanced down at them, and then looked at his patient. "You don't have Pentor virus." He said with relief. "The psyche scanning revealed your brain patterns are almost back to normal. About the other results.

"Whatever Saavik did, you are cured of the Pon Farr." Berger smiled in such a way that Spock rose an offended eyebrow. Neither the less he said nothing. "There are some small strange abnormalities however." The doctor frowned.

"Saavik mind melded with me," he said.

"Yes. Then that explains it. The scanner registered ebbing brain patterns not belonging to you. They will fade gradually," he said. Berger cleared his throat.

"Going back to the physical test. You are completely exhausted, physically and mentally." Spock once again cocked his right brow.

"On the contrary doctor, I feel quite invigorated."

The doctor shook his head. "That's not what the machinery said. It is not malfunctioning because the thing was serviced only yesterday and it is working brilliantly. I think you are hiding your fatigue without knowing it. Probably with that clever brainpower you have. Neither the less you are completely shattered."

"Very well doctor I will rest."

"Well, that's good," said Berger expecting an excuse. "You go and sleep. That is the best cure I can offer at this present time."

"And anything else?"

"Nope," said the doctor.

"Then I'll excuse myself," he said. Spock turned and departed the office and sickbay. He decided to see whether his quarters were left untouched by the Arkhictoura.