Healing has Begun: Ferengi Cure, Part 1 (A Little Chaos)

Posted on Fri Nov 24th, 2023 @ 4:15pm by Ensign Annika Wiseman

2,164 words; about a 11 minute read

Mission: Mission 1: Campor III - Resupply
Location: Grabok Settlement, Campor III
Timeline: MD: C15

Lissa walked backed to the hospital administration office with a group of Ferengi medics. She noticed Doctors Takanashi and McEntyre consulting with one another. She handed Rikka a PADD. "Things seem to be going well, Doctor. The medics are successfully replicating their own treatment and follow-up protocols," Lissa reported.

"Most Excellent. With luck, we can have the majority of the colonists inoculated within the next 24-48 hours." J.R smiled as he was sent the data from Rikka's PADD to his.

He’d taken to wearing comfortable clothes. Well, at least comfortable clothes to him, his standard tunic with the optional skirt that really accented the curves of his hips and the tall soft boots that he enjoyed wearing when he had to stand for long periods of time. His lab coat accented it all. His tail swished back and forth as he reviews the data on the PADD with a soft purr.

"The treatments seem to be goin well. Let me know if you need anything else, Lissa."

"Thanks, Doctor. I thought, I might take a little walk? If that's ok?" Lissa asked, somewhat meekly.

"Of Course, We'll comm you if we need you. Go enjoy a break." J.R said with a smile as he continued to type up his notes on the results of the trials and the patient's conditions for his medical log.

Lissa was hoping to take a break soon. Annika had come down with the security contingent to see if she could pick up whether anything going on in the Ferengi settlement could be related to the problems the other colonies were facing. She was hoping to take a peek at what they were doing.

As part of the Security contingent, Vevi was just a gun-toting mouth-breather at this moment in time. She had little medical training-just enough to keep herself alive for a little bit-and so, she stood off to the side, cobalt arms crossed over her chest, hazel eyes roaming, watching the scene for impending danger. Ruby, her rifle, was slung nonchalantly over her left shoulder, at the ready, on the off chance that some Ferengi idiot knew that Starfleet was beaming down today and felt like making a scene. Her antennae were moving, following the vibes of the space. So far, so good.

Annika had been ordered to look around, see if something had been missed. But it wasn't easy to do so as she had someone hovering at every single move she made, she actually started to resent it, she looked at a few of the sick Ferengi some looked as if they had suffered some form of toxic metal poisoning, she wasn't the most up to date on their physiology so that was a hard guess, she looked around, based on the reports she thought this was a two pronged incident, but she wasn't a terrorism expert, but she did notice something, as she approached a pumping station, she knelt down to examine the small pump, pulling out her tricorder she took a simple scan of the equipment, sensing someone's presence "There's some kind of residue still in this water pump, it's too diluted to get an accurate scan, but if they want to avoid another outbreak of this it might be smart to get them cleaned up."

"Yeah, they were poisoned from the water," Lissa said from behind her. "The protocol will make them immune, but they've been ordered to only drink replicated water for now. The virus isn't entirely biological either. There's a nanovirus embedded in it."

Annika looked at the readings, "It reads as a synthetic hydro-carbon, bound with something I don't recognize, were samples taken?"

"A lot. Science has a system design to gut their water purification process entirely, and treat the water with a specific radiation frequency, and rebuild the treatment facility. But with all of the sabotage still going on, the build is on hold, for obvious reasons," Lissa responded.

She bent down next to Annika. "I was the first one to find it in the water actually," she said with a smile. "But we had science officers with us, so they went to work on that pretty quickly once we discovered it."

"Where was the initial source of the contamination?" Annika wanted steps retraced, she was also playing a hunch.

"The contamination is the strongest at the water tower," Lissa said pointing to the large tower that was in view from the hospital. "But the water at the treatment facility itself further upstream is pretty contaminated also. Some of the fruit trees around there are producing spoiled fruit from contaminated soil. Minute traces upstream from treatment facility, the science team thinks most likely contaminated water just brought there from animals."

Standing up Annika looked around, she looked at the water tower, then brushed the dirt off her uniform, "How extensive was the examination of the water tower?"

"Just scans. I heard there is supposed to be a senior staff meeting soon, and maybe they'll send an engineering and security crew down here to look more into all of that. When the team was trying to examine the treatment facility they were attacked by some pretty high-tech drones. I heard your boss has a theory, but they are keeping pretty quiet on it until they know for sure." Lissa told her.

Annika started to walk in the general direction of the water tower, then pausing. "If they shot up the water treatment facility, there's a strong chance the contaminant was injected there then accumulated in the tower, maybe even became concentrated there then moved through the colony, there's also a chance the tower was the source, and judging by the condition of those valves the contaminant back flowed into the treatment facility, either way this was a perfect storm situation for this to happen."

Vevi hurried when Annika moved on. "Christ, Ensign, you can't just leave," the Intel officer commented. "Good way to get yourself in trouble," she said. "I don't trust the Ferengi as far as I can throw them," she said. And that was NOT far. Sure, she was fit but she was still just a female Andorian. She wasn't exactly a bodybuilder.

"Annika!" Lissa called out, chasing after her friend. "I think we better leave it. Commander Chalan has a plan to investigate with proper resources. Did you miss the part where I said they got shot at?" Lissa asked.

Two kilometers later Annika finally stopped, "I don't have to go further," pointing to the base of the water tower, "I don't see how we missed the maintenance hatch being smashed for the pumps."

Vevi made a face and then looked at Lissa. "Gimme your tricorder, please," she said. She'd forgotten hers, damn. "I forgot mine." She took the woman's tricorder, and approached the hatch. She scanned it quickly. "Probably because it wasn't like that. It's pretty fresh," Vevi said. The tricorder told her it was dense, local wood, easy to smash. But her intel reports had told her that the door had been intact as recently as yesterday. "Let me call the Columbia. Elliott and Tomm will want to know this," she said, with a sigh. Hell, she hated having to do this kind of work. She much preferred her cloak-and-dagger type of thing, but such was the way the cookies crumbled. She moved a bit away from the other two ladies, and tapped her Comms badge. After a brief back and forth, she returned. "OK, they're informed. We better tell the docs; Commander Takanshi is the CO of this mission, and she'll need to inform Commander Chalan," Vevi said. "Let's go," she said, starting back. She slung Ruby over her right shoulder to give her left one a break, and headed back to the doctors. "We got a problem. Hatch to the water tower thing is busted. Looks like shenanigans. I already called my boss and the Security guy. Can you two let Commander Chalan know, please? Of course, I'll put it in my report," the Andorian said. She took up her spot again at the flank, to watch, and wait, returning to "crayon eating hired gun," once more.

Back at the Hospital, J.R nodded and tapped his commbadge. "McEntyre to Chalan." He waited patiently for a reply.

=/\= Dr. McEntyre, if it's about the water tower, we just heard Commander Tomm and Lieutenant Elliot are on the Bridge. Unless this is an emergency, it's going to have to wait, we have a situation up here with the Romulans and Klingons, your team may have to sit tight for a while. =/\= Chalan responded.

"Understood, Commander. McEntrye out"

As they were walking back, Annika raised an eyebrow "This planet is becoming a powder keg, it might be wise to take precautions." checking the charge on her phaser.

"Lieutenant Zh'khahol, secure our position" J.R ordered professionally as he tapped his commbadge. "McEntyre to all Starfleet Personnel, report status, Columbia is on alert"

Annika snapped the safety off her phaser "Doctors, Lissa, it might be a good idea to start looking for cover in case things go SNAFU." snapping a glare over too Vevi. "I assume that's acceptable Lieutenant?"

Vevi shot her a look but nodded. "Yah, that's the smartest thing you've said since I onboarded," she remarked. She didn't care-SHE had a big gun, and she was kind of reckless. She would run TOWARDS danger to keep these yahoos alive. If she had to.

=/\= "All Starfleet Personnel, This is Doctor McEntyre, Yellow Alert, return to base camp immediately. All Security Personnel Secure the site."

"Aw, hell," Lissa commented as she, Annika, and Vevi picked it up to a jog.

J.R. tapped his commbadge, "Ensign Wiseman, I assume you want to take your security troops and secure the perimeter? Your orders are to make sure we don't get raided. I don't like our position here, so we'll try to baton down where we can."

The three jogged up to the steps of the hospital and saw Dr. McEntyre just as he got off the comm with Annika.

"It ain't her "troops," the Andorian responded. "I technically outrank her, actually," she said. "Still. Until Tomm and Elliott can get here, a patrol is a good idea. You have anything bigger than a handheld phaser, Annika?"

"Lissa help me secure the medical supplies, the vaccines and the research data. And remember, Klingon or Romulan, Our Blue uniforms means squat to them."

Annika opened her tricorder again, "I'm gonna have to quote regulations, and we're going to have to start a beam out evac to the ship, I can keep a perimeter watch with the tricorder but we're going to need get our feet moving."

"If Columbia is on Yellow Alert, her shields are up, she can't beam nobody up." J.R retorted to Annika as he worked to secure the data.

"Is the building that was being used as a clinic empty?" Annika had an Idea.

"Possibly, I'd check with Dr. Kephi. Ensign, how many Security Troops did you bring with you? I want one to guard Dr. Takanashi, I don't want anything to happen to her or her baby." J.R replied thinking about the others in the camp.

"If it is, I want to start moving patients there. See if the Ferengi would be willing to spare anyone to help with that."

Annika pulled her bag out from under her duster coat opening it, she pulled out three cylindrical objects "Don't pee yourself Lissa, they're smoke grenades, two are heavy smoke, one is colored smoke save the colored one is not to be used unless Colombia sends down a shuttle to evacuate us, the chemical in these two tends to irritate Klingon respiratory systems, I have no clue why there were in stores, squeeze the spoon, pull the pin, and throw it away from you." Annika looked to JR "If things simmer down get outta here, I'll beam up with the security detail."

"Oh geez," Lissa said looking at the smoke grenades. "What am I.... nevermind." she looked around for a place to put them.

"Understood, I'm goin to go find Dr. Takanashi, Can you spare a Security Officer to come with me?" J.R. asked as he heads for the door, his bag over his shoulder full of the medical data.

"That's Vevi's job, since she's got one of the few phaser rifles." Annika said "O'Dell and Shelton can go with her, The plan is to stall not win here, we're out gunned and defiantly out matched, I'm no tactician but I've learned a few things."

"That's all I ask. Hold out til we can get Columbia to beam us up. I still have my phaser on me, just in case. Good Luck Ensign." J.R. smiled at Annika.

>> Part Two >>

Lieutenant J.R. McEntyre
Assistant Chief Medical Officer

1st Lieutenant Vevi Zh'kahlol
Intelligence Officer
USS Columbia

Ensign Annika Wiseman
Intelligence Officer
USS Columbia

Ensign Daisheliss Kerr
Nurse
USS Columbia

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