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By Root 1167 0

cease-fire came through just days later, the celebratory reaction that immediately spread through all the worlds of the Federation seemed entirely appropriate. Field reporters, no longer in danger from being stationed in a combat zone, freely captured these historic moments for posterity…and with those reports came images of the wounded civilians on both sides of the conflict-the men, women, and children who had paid a dear price for the enmity of their leaders. Among the survivors were about two thousand Klingons who had called Praxis their home, who had escaped the effects of the Genesis wave due, in whole or in part, to their deep underground habitation or the protection of various dampening forcefields.

Many of the survivors had already been rescued and relocated to Qo’noS for medical attention, with further rescue operations still under way. The instant that the Klingon High Council gave its authorization, Federation relief efforts mobilized, and within hours the first teams of doctors, nurses, social workers, and other disaster recovery personnel descended en masse onto the Klingon homeworld.

David Marcus walked down the ramp of his transport along with several dozen other relief workers-one of several teams sent to supplement the medical units that had landed the day before. As he set foot upon the landing pad, he mentally added Qo’noS to the growing list of alien worlds he had visited in his young life. The sun had just begun to set, and the buildings around him cast long shadows, made more ominous by the severe angles and embellishments of the imposing Klingon architecture. The air was still warm, and carried with it an unusual musky scent that David couldn’t quite identify but found strangely appealing.

He followed the rest of the personnel as they crossed a wide street and poured through the doors of a large coliseum where evacuees were temporarily housed. As he entered, his senses were assaulted by a cacophony of bustling activity amid the sterile smells of medical supplies and the wails of the suffering patients.

Beds were laid out as far as he could see, filling the large lobby area and extending down long curved corridors on either side. Most of the patients were covered with sheets, but a few of their unnaturally horrific injuries could be seen here and there as the medical staff attended to specific cases. David’s memory harkened back to the incident aboard the Enterprise five years earlier-an event he had never wished to relive, though now he had little choice.

His mood instantly improved when he glimpsed a familiar face. He rushed up to an elderly doctor attending to a young Klingon boy. “Doctor McCoy!” he said.

The doctor looked up and broke into a wide grin. “Doctor David Marcus! How in God’s name did you get mixed up in all this?” He reached out his hand and David gripped it firmly.

“What can I say,” David replied. “I guess I’m just idealistic enough to believe I can make a difference here.”

“Well, your beliefs are spot-on. It’s good to have you here, David.”

“Thanks,” he replied, hoping that McCoy spoke the truth. “So how are things going?”

“Oh, I dunno,” the doctor said, casually looking about the area. “I guess when you consider that they’ve converted a sports arena into a triage center, things are going pretty well. Admittedly, I had to take a crash course in Klingon anatomy prior to my arrival-and it shows,” he winced with chagrin. “But the good news is that I’ve spent the past five years figuring out how to reverse the effects of the genetic damage caused by the matrix. Even though a lot of these injuries are pretty horrific, most of the patients will eventually recover.”

“I suppose that’s good news,” David said, trying unsuccessfully to match McCoy’s level of optimism. He looked down at the boy on the cot in front of the doctor. The young Klingon was fully conscious, but seemed to be experiencing a great deal of discomfort. His torso was fully exposed, and the skin on the left side of his body was altered, growing darker and coarser the closer it was to his extremities. The effect