Chapter 7: Vanishing

Author's Note: Thank you to those of you who have done more than look, but have actually reviewed...I really appreciate you taking the time to write a few words it makes me very happy! I hope you continue to enjoy the story.

Summary: Beverly finally has a break, Wesley takes a turn...

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0900hrs

The next morning

Beverly Crusher felt refreshed and a little more human after eating, bathing, and having nearly ten hours of uninterrupted sleep. She awoke, surprised to find herself nestled in Deanna's bed. The sheets beside her had been worn and rustled but there was now no trace of her visitor from last night.

As she quickly dressed and checked her PADD notes from Dr. Hill she was worried that Deanna had bitten off more than she could chew with her son. The notes indicated some things had improved while Wesley still continued to deteriorate.

If he wasn't better soon, she would have to take him to Starfleet Medical on Earth when they docked there. Poor thing...what an awful way to spend his birthday.

She quickly gathered her belongings, grabbed a small sensible breakfast and coffee and left Deanna's quarters.

Beverly entered her quarters and found Deanna asleep in a chair covered with a blanket. She looked at Wesley in the bed and noticed he was covered with the sheet and at first glance seemed to be sleeping peacefully.

Deanna, sensing her presence, startled awake and stared towards the bed.

"What time is it?"

"A little after nine."

"Oh good grief...I can't believe I slept that long...I'm sorry."

"It's okay...I know it s exhausting."

"Actually, Wesley was no trouble. Dr. Hill checked on him quite often. I left the room when she would exam him. Poor dear...he drank some broth and fell asleep last night after you left, he's been asleep since. I'm sorry, I couldn't get the fever down for more than an hour...but ..."

"Wait...he drank something?"

"Yes just a little chicken broth and ..."

"And kept it down..."

"Yes...but..."

"And slept all night?"

"Well yes..."

"Deanna that's amazing."

"I told him if he didn't behave I was going to send Worf in as his nurse."

"Oh that's awful, you probably terrified him." Beverly sat on the bed and touched her son's very warm skin and smelled the oil covering his body, she rubbed her fingers together staring at the silky substance.

"I gave him a massage to help with the body aches and the coughing. He was in a lot of pain. I think he couldn't tell you how bad he was hurting he was just too weak but I could feel it."

She handed Beverly the tricorder. "It's not all good news...Dr. Hill said his symptoms are getting worse again, so that's why she put him on some oxygen through his nose. She said last night he's developed pneumonia and some type of brain inflammation due to the fever."

Beverly reviewed the last three readings and she immediately scanned Wesley again. She heard an odd sound coming from her son.

"Lights 100%" Beverly nearly screamed as she launched onto the bed and roughly flipped her son over to face her.

His eyes were rolled in the top of his head and he was twitching and struggling to pull in air.

"What's wrong?"

"He's too hot again, temperature is close to 105, Oh God, he seizing." She held his head still as she called out to the computer.

"Crusher to Bridge."

"Wes, can you hear me?" she turned him over on his side, as his mouth slid open.

Deanna raced into the lavatory to gather a cold wet towel and raced back to place it on his neck.

"Beverly I'm so sorry."

"Riker here."

"How long before we reach Earth?"

"About 34 hours doctor. Is there a problem?"

"Wes...Ensign Crusher is getting worse. I'm moving him to sick bay isolation until we arrive. There's ...nothing more I can do for him on this ship. It's urgent that we reach Starfleet Medical." Picard heard the conversation as he exited his ready room.

"Mr. Data what would be our arrival time at warp 8." Picard announced.

"1 hour 2 minutes 38 seconds."

"Make it so."

The starfield in front of the bridge was suddenly filled with the brilliance of a billion lights as their speed increased exponentially. The ship hurtled through the outer reaches of space heading to the outer arm of the milky way in search of a small yellow star system that held a host of planets they called home.

"Thank you. Please notify me when we are in transporter range. Crusher out." Beverly said her voice breaking.

"Number One you have the bridge." Picard strode off the bridge, as Data turned to look at Commander Riker and Worf who stood stoically. Their expressions were clearly ones of worry.

"Dr Crusher seems...unnerved. It would appear that there is a high possibility that Wesley may not survive this."

"We choose to think positively Data, and hope for the best. Wesley is one of our own, we won't give up on him so easily."

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When Picard arrived in Sickbay, Beverly had Wesley in an EBSU bed.

He was fully intubated and he looked extremely frail.

Picard gasped at the sight of him. He looked so different from the young man he usually was, even so different from days earlier. His ribs were prominent against tight pale skin, and he looked as though he was clinging to this life with just the mere tendrils of hairs.

Nurse Ogawa quickly ran the tricorder over him. "BP 85/55, response to painful stimuli, temp 38.7 pulse is 50."

Beverly was dumbfounded, something was terribly wrong. His blood pressure was now fatally low.

"Dr. we have to put him in a cryonic chamber. His temperature exceeds a safe level for his brain and other organs to survive."

Dr. Crusher ignored Dr. Hill's rant...she stared at the tricorder continuing to read the rest of his results.

"How is he?" Picard asked Beverly. Lines of worry creased her forehead as she held on tightly to his hand.

"His blood pressure is stagnant. His blood is thickening...I don't understand this...his own blood is attacking him."

"...And this is the same virus we all had?"

"No, it has morphed into an entirely different beast. It's been five days, he's lost eleven pounds and I can't break the fever. He's in stasis and on full dexalene treatments to bring oxygen directly to the cells. I can't treat the symptoms properly because I can't get his body strong enough to fight the infection. He's developed a tertiary infection. Meningitis. If I can't get it under control.." she rambled.

"Could Starfleet Medical have a more potent cure?"

"There is no known cure. There is a procedure I would like to try. But I want to do it in a controlled environment. If we can give Wes some antibodies of a compatible donor that has had the virus maybe it could help him fight. We don't have the same Rhesus factor, I could donate to him, but it would be best to have a perfect match, and the antibodies."

"What is his blood type?"

"AB-...somewhat rare... same as ...same as yours." she stammered turning to face him.

"If my blood can help him, you know I would do anything to save him..."
She nodded somberly as he continued. "But, you said the virus has mutated can't that transfusion cause more harm than good?"

"Yes, it could kill him. But, Jean Luc...if we don't find something soon - my son could die."

Picard felt like he'd been punched in the gut when she uttered those words. Surely she was being overly dramatic...she was exhausted. He stared into her eyes, and saw the fear and heartbreaking pain in them, and it took everything in him not to scream at her to not give up on her son.

He knew she never would.

Beverly allowed Dr. Hill to place Wesley in the chamber after a quick kiss on his chapped lips. She wiped the sweat from her brow and continued working. She sat down at the adjacent desk and a deep and aching lethargy consumed her as she laid her head on the desk to rest for a few moments.

Picard stroked her hair. The repeated calls of her name nothing more than whispers in an exhausted dream.

Somewhere in time...a skip occurred...and time slowly started to march forward.
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There is so much angst in the next three chapters in this story that if you have a heart condition...you might want to get a pacemaker.

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*EBSU(Emergency Bio Support Unit) cryonic -use for freezing or hyperbaric stasis chamber to place individuals in until medical intervention can be attained at a later time.