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"Captain! Stop shouting!" The Doctor's voice was strident, as angry as Janeway's own.

Janeway's temple throbbed and she rubbed it. Her heart was beating rapidly and her face was hot with the rising anger she had so abruptly quelled. The Doctor, too, looked furious, more so than her sharp words would have warranted. His dark eyes snapped and veins bulged hi his neck.

"Sorry, Doctor. Seems like this stress is beginning to affect all of us, even you."

Telek stepped forward and grasped Janeway's arm, hard. "What did you say?"

Tuvok reached for his phaser, but Janeway didn't need his help.

"Let go of me." She said the words coldly and clearly. At once, the Romulan released her.

"Forgive me, Captain, but I fear- You spoke of

stress affecting even the Doctor, a being who is merely a hologram."

"You'd drop that 'merely' if Mr. Neelix had managed to stick that knife in you," muttered the Doctor as he regarded the medical tricorder's readings.

Telek ignored the gibe. "Doctor, what is Neelix's condition?"

"I'm not entirely certain," said the Doctor. "His white blood cell count is abnormally high. The endocrine system is releasing a flood of hormones, as if he's in an extremely stressful, perhaps even dangerous situation. But he's unconscious. He's not even dreaming. The hypothalamus is unusually active as well. There are contusions on the throat that, coincidentally enough, correspond to the exact shape of a certain Romulan's fingers, but those can be healed rapidly. He should be coming around shortly."

The Doctor scowled. "Captain, I'd like to run some tests on him. There may be an infection of some sort that is targeting the upper brain stem, or an injury we weren't aware of."

"An infection," Telek repeated, as if to himself. "Yes, those words will do as well as any." More loudly, he said, "Captain, Doctor, I have an unusual request regarding Neelix, especially given the circumstances. I wish to work with the Doctor while he conducts his tests, and I also need to have access to your computer system. And I will require a crew member to assist me, someone who has a wide variety of experiences... and an open mind."

"Captain," Tuvok said. "Dr. R'Mor has been in-

volved in an incident involving potential homicide. I do not think it wise to grant him any access to either Mr. Neelix or Voyager's databanks until the situation is resolved."

Janeway rubbed her throbbing temple. "What is it you hope to find, Telek?"

"I cannot say at this juncture. It is a merely a hypothesis-one I hope is very wrong. Please, Captain. You may have a guard with a phaser to my head at all times if that would satisfy your Vulcan guard dog." His eyebrows lifted and he looked immediately chagrined, as if the sneering words had popped out of his mouth without his volition.

"My so-called Vulcan guard dog will indeed be with you at all times," Janeway said, "but since you seem to have a theory as to what's happening with Mr. Neelix, I'm going to grant your request"

"Captain!" The Doctor seemed livid. "Telek R'Mor is responsible for putting Mr. Neelix here in the first place! I hardly think it appropriate to have him poking around sickbay, getting in the way at the very least"

"He's responsible for the bruises to Neelix's throat," Janeway agreed. "But what about the hyperactive immune system you mentioned, Doctor? The flood of hormones? Did Telek do that too?"

The Doctor fell silent Janeway turned again to Telek. "I can meet half your request regarding a crewman. Seven of Nine has the widest variety of experiences and knowledge on this ship, but I don't know how open her mind is."

"Thank you, Captain. I will report to you as soon as I know anything." "Yes," said the Doctor forcefully. "We will."

Romulan. Aggressive, intelligent species bent on galactic domination. An offshoot of the Vulcan race, the Romulans possess the same powerful physical strength but do not have the emotional control exhibited by