String Theory_ Fusion (Book 2) - Kirsten Beyer [74]
“What do you mean you ‘don’t think so,’ ” she bellowed. “You are talking about someone who is vital to this crew… someone who we care about.”
“Then it is unfortunate I was not programmed to care in the same way that you do,” the Doctor replied. “I have done what I can to repair the injuries he sustained before he was infected. I am actually of the opinion that were it not for the parasite, Lieutenant Tuvok would probably had died several hours ago.”
“What!?!” B’Elanna demanded.
“I believe the parasite which entered the lieutenant’s body is actually the first stage in the development of a new life-form. The organism which is now merging with his central nervous system was able to sustain critical neural pathways which, given his injuries and blood loss, were in the process of shutting down. Although I was able to stabilize those systems which were damaged, it is almost impossible and certainly unadvisable to separate the lieutenant’s neurological tissue from that of the organism, which is also utilizing it to grow. Even if there were a way to remove the parasite from his body now, he would most likely awake from the procedure in a persistent vegetative state. As I have never seen an organism like this one, nor is there any record of one in our medical database, I am hesitant to speculate as to the kind of creature that will emerge from Lieutenant Tuvok’s body once the gestation of the first-stage life-form is complete, nor can I estimate how long the generative process will take. Given all this, I believe the containment field offers the greatest protection for the rest of the crew.”
B’Elanna’s head was spinning. Tuvok had been infected by a parasite. The parasite was feeding off of his body and slowly killing him in the process. The part she was having a hard time with was the kind of creature that would emerge from Tuvok’s body when the gestation was complete.
She needed more information. “Doctor, I thought most parasites lived within a host, feeding off of them perhaps, even to the point of death, but I’ve never heard of a parasite that ended up using a host to create an entirely new life-form.”
“Then it was, perhaps, an excellent choice for you to become an engineer, rather than a physician,” he replied without a trace of sarcasm. “The fact is that from what I can tell, the parasite is merging with Lieutenant Tuvok in a way that suggests at least some part of him will survive along with the new organism. His body will die, that much is clear, but the level of neurological tissue and biochemical signal transfer leads me to believe that rather than his body simply being used and then discarded, in some way Tuvok will be an integral part of the new organism.”
B’Elanna didn’t care. As far as she was concerned, saving part of Tuvok was not an acceptable compromise.
“Listen to me,” she said, glaring at him through the containment field so intensely that the Doctor took an involuntary step back as she began. “You will do everything in your power to remove this thing from his body, no matter what the cost. That’s an order.”
“Can you give me orders?” the Doctor asked, his eyes seemed to focus on the provisional rank bars Janeway had assigned to the ex-Maquis crew members. “I am not certain that technically speaking you outrank me.”
B’Elanna returned to the EMH programming panel. She was still several minutes away from completely restoring the Doctor who would not hesitate to act on her wishes or in Tuvok’s best interest, but time seemed like the one thing she was running uncomfortably short of. Instead, she altered one of the backup Doctor’s subroutines and said, “I said find a way to remove it… that’s an order.”
“Yes, Lieutenant.