Patient Zero

Posted on 2026, Fri May 15th, @ 4:23am by Lieutenant Commander Jep Fallo & Lieutenant Joseph Benjamin Md & Lieutenant JG Eska

1,117 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Episode 1 "Operation Iron Justice" USS Halo, Star Base 113, USS Vigilance
Location: Crew quarters, deck 14
Timeline: MD6

Joseph double checked his med kit, it wasn't unusual for a doctor to check on a patient in their respective quarters, but this one had a catch, several crew had become sick from an odd strain of a nominally treatable bug, Joe was annoyed, had it mutated, had it... was the scenarios running through his head as he got ready to meet up with one of his colleges, he made his way too deck fourteen where he'd agreed to meet Lt Eska.

Eska had followed because his CMO requested it. She was ready to run a full gambit of various scans of the environment.

Ben Ackerman, Valkyrie pilot, stringed instrument officianado, and self proclaimed ladies man, was thoroughly engaged in the highly lethargic activity known as 'Rotmaxxing'. He was starting to recover from the Flu, but rather slowly. The illness that he suspected he had contracted from the Orion woman he had met on his last night of shoreleave, carried with it severely dry coughs, nausea, headaches, joint aches, toothaches, and a burning tingling sensation that flowed across the dermal layers of his body in random waves.

"Uuuuuuggghhh, I'm bringing a medical tricorder any time I go pub crawling from now on." He coughed and fought the sensation to vomit as he layed on his couch watching some random holonet soap opera.

Just then his door chimed.

"Blaaaaaagh, uhg, enter at your own risk!" He said without bothering to sit up. Though the disease was extremely infectious prior to the onset of symptoms, its ability to spread tapered off drastically after its incubation period. The Halos medical staff had also quickly established testing and quarantine protocols after the first cases of the outbreak.

"Ensign Ackerman, I'm Doctor Benjamin I'm doing a follow up on you checking symptoms and how you're doing.." Joe said through his mask, "How are you doing?"

"I haven't puked today...so, I guess I'm getting better. Bleeeeeegh" he weezed.

Opening his tricorder Joe started a scan, "G-I symptoms typically pass in forty too seventy two hours, which is a good sign, you're still running a slight fever, any increased sweating or shakes?"

"Nah, thise seem to ebbing a bit Doc...That Orion really did a number on me sir." Ackerman replied, hinting at the possible origins of the infection.

Joe paused "Orion?" He paused "You were in contact with an infected Orion?" Joe paused trying to think.

""Yeah, she was the only person I saw during my time on the station...I knew of should have beamed back and let the bio-filters do their job, but I walked back aboard through the airlock." Ackerman replied as sat up on his couch. Just interacting with people was raising his spirits, as he had been stuck alone in his quarters for the past 4 days.

He was also unaware of the heightened and finely tuned Orion immune system. With the presumed additional effects of female Orion pheromones, a more pathogenic and supercharged mutation of the Ribolian Flu was possible if not likely. And if this was a new strain entirely, it could cause a pandemic, and it would explain how it had originally been missed by the ships internal bio sensors.

Joe shook his head, "Yeah you're going too need a booster of the normal vaccine and your off duty for four days, Orion immunology means they don't get sick from most strains of this flu bug, I'll have to schedule booster shots or the whole crew especially the non vulcanoids." Joe popped a vaccine pod into they hypospray, then aiming it the mans neck pressing the plunger "Stay away from Orion females for at least a month."

"A booster? I'm pretty sure I had an omni-immunization recently that included the Ribolian Flu... you can probably see it on my medical records, if I did. And I'm no Doctor, but, is it safe to give booster vaccines to people suffering from active infections? Doesn't that risk accelerating viral mutation, and antibody dependant enhancement?" The Ensign coughed.

"You've been around Orion pheromones, your immune response is still reduced, a by-product of that exposure so you'll need a booster to raise your response and to accelerate your recovery, also I want you in for a full medical." Joe said as he punched a vial into the hypospray, "Also you can reread the protocols on interspecies intimate contact." he said.

"Roger that Doc." Ackerman wheeled out another hoarse,.phlegm filled cough.

Regardless of his lack of medical credentials though, the young Ensign was was correct in a few of his concerns about both the strain of the Flu, and the risks inherent with recieving a Ribolian Flu vaccine booster. As it turned out, the strain of the disease he had contracted was a highly mutated, well adapted, and more virulent strain than the one that the current schedule of vaccines were targeted for. It was true that administering a round of boosters would increase most species genotype to have an increased immune response to the virus, the boosters woyld also accelerate the rate of viral evolution and increase the cases of asymptomatic infection and spread. If the outbreak of the Flu aboard the Halo was successfully contained and eradicated, these facts woukd be rendered moot. Though if any viable clusters of the strain survived in a density that left open possibility for viral replication, a new and more deadly, vaccine resistant outbreak would remain a risk

Eska got a puzzled look as she turned and started to scan the ventilation system in the room. She was wondering if something is wrong there. With how fast this virus spread. She was starting to wonder something, but needed more information.

"Something wrong Doctor?" Ackerman asked Eska as he noticed her performing a scan.

Joe looked to Eska, "Find something else?"

"In rum'bles." Eska said quickly in Novan. "Quick spread." She added.

"Mutation?" Joseph asked "or is he still showing signs of being contagious?"

"I'm still quite phlemy if thats what your asking." Ackerman replied.

Joseph looked at a reading on his tricorder, "Your symptoms look like they're running it's course, but I'll want a medical exam before you're cleared for duty."

"Understood Doc. I'll see how I'm feeling tomorrow and call in for a physical if I feel up to it."

Eska was attempting to figure out the right words. Then she walked over to Joseph. She showed him her tricorder that showed that the virus was in the Atmosphere Scrubbers, thriving.

Joseph muttered "Damn...take that info too the lab stat"

As the two doctors departed Ackerman wheeled out another hoarse cough and got up to go have a sonic shower, hoping that would help him feel better.

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