Chapter Five: Specimens

Nog cared about his human friend more than he ever would have admitted to anyone, and despite Dr Bashir's assurance, worrying about Jake made it hard for him to keep his mind on his work. After all, the doctor didn't really know anything; he had just been trying to make Nog feel better.

Doing something to help might be something that actually could make him feel better, and he recalled Bashir's words that he might eventually need a specimen to study. Surely sooner was better than later, and Nog flattered himself that he and Jake were the only ones who knew the way into the abandoned level where they had found the bugs.

Ignoring Quark's calls for him to serve the couple waiting at one of the bar tables, he left the bar and quickly gathered some equipment before heading back to the access shaft with its loose panel that only a child could squeeze through. "Hang on, Jake," he hissed through his teeth as he squirmed through. "I'll bring the doctor one of the bugs, and he'll figure out what it did to you."

oOo

"Dr Bashir, I'm sorry for the interruption, but Nog is here to see you, and he insists it's important even though he doesn't need a doctor."

Bashir rubbed a hand over his weary eyes, grateful for the break of the nurse's voice over the intercom. "Tell him to come on in." He pressed his fingers to his temples for a moment against the headache that was beginning to build there after spending the past two hours going through the results of the test with a fine-tooth comb. If he had known what he was looking for it would be simpler; he would only have had to read through one subset of data. As it was, he had to scrutinize everything; even finding an anomaly in one place didn't mean there wouldn't be another somewhere else.

But so far, everything had still been maddeningly normal.

"Hello, Nog," he greeted him, looking up and switching off his computer screen as the young Ferengi came into the room with his hands behind his back. "What can I do for you?"

"How's Jake?" Nog demanded.

Dr Bashir frowned, wondering how much patient confidentially allowed him to say. But surely Nog deserved something after what the doctor had already told him. "He's awake now; I'm still investigating exactly why the venom had that effect."

"Then…you could still use these?" Grinning, Nog brought his hands from behind his back and placed a specimen case on Bashir's desk.

Bashir caught his breath, his headache suddenly gone as he realized with absolute certainly what the box must contain. "Nog, that was an incredibly foolish thing to do," he scolded with more sternness than he felt. "What if one of them had bitten you?"

"Aw, they wouldn't hurt a Ferengi."

"A day ago, we didn't know they would hurt a human," Bashir pointed out.

"Well, I wasn't bitten anyway; I was careful."

Bashir sighed, deciding to leave it for the moment. He reached for the cover, then hesitated. If he was bitten himself, he wouldn't be able to let himself sleep until he had found the cure. And while he might be an insomniac anyway, he didn't want to risk forcing it. And the effects might be different for him, anyway…

"It's safe," Nog told him, guessing at least some of his thoughts. "It's got a force field; just don't stick your fingers through without gloves."

Hoping that meant Nog had also taken the precaution of wearing gloves, Bashir slowly slid the lid back.

About half a dozen various sized creatures crawled around within the box. Insects wasn't quite the right word for them, he mused; the shells reminded him of beetles, but they appeared to have about ten legs each, and he suspected they wouldn't fit neatly into any Earth system of classification, although "bug" was probably broad enough to be accurate.

The largest was nearly half an inch long and about half as wide; several others were a bit smaller, and two were so different that he assumed they had to be a larval stage, if not a different species entirely.

"Thank you, Nog," he said again, more sincerely this time. "I'm sure these will be a help; I'll return the box to you as soon as I can."

"Good, 'cause Quark doesn't know I took it."

"I'll be discrete, then," Bashir promised. "You'd better get on back before he gets more upset with you than I assume he already is — but you're sure you weren't bitten?"

"Yes!" Nog insisted impatiently, turning and scuttling out the door almost as if he were a beetle himself.

Bashir looked after him, wondering whether to believe him, and made a mental note to check on the boy over the next few days.

Dismissing Nog from his mind for the moment, he pulled Jake's test results up on the screen once more — and with fresh eyes, almost at once saw the slight deviation from normal he had been looking for.

Next chapter coming next week!

I proofread all my stories at least once before posting, but if you see any mistakes I might have missed, please let me know!

Please note that I have only minimal internet access, and may not have time to respond to all reviews/messages. (But they are much appreciated, even if you're reading this story long after I originally post it!) If you have questions regarding my Deep Space Nine alternate history, check my profile first to see if they're answered there. Thanks for your understanding! Barbie