EPISODE GUIDES : Janet's Star Trek Voyager Site

MACROCOSM

EPISODE 54

Part C

This font and color are used to indicate the Doctor's flashback narration of events to Janeway.

This font and color are used to indicate the flashback of events.

.....Janeway goes to the Messhall. She finds a number of the crew lying unconscious, including Kim and Chakotay.

While crouched by Chakotay, she notices a wound on his neck. Tiny lifeforms are emerging from it!

She hears a buzzing sound. In the air, heading right for her, she sees for the first time all of one of the invading lifeforms. It is big! It knocks her over.

But she quickly moves into a sitting position and fires at it.

Panting from the fever brought on by the bite, and also injured in the side by her fall in the Messhall, Janeway staggers to Sickbay. The door control does not work or has been disabled, so she gets out a manual door actuator from the backpack and with an effort manages to prise the doors partly open. Then a phaser is put to her neck!

It is the Doctor: "Captain, needless to say, I thought you were something else!"

Doctor: "It won't be long before the other aliens sense you're in here and try to invade Sickbay. We don't have much time to treat you.
Janeway: "Doctor, what's going on? What's-"
Doctor: "You've ruptured your dorsal extensor muscle and bruised your rib. I'm going to have to perform minor surgery. Lie on your side and try to remain perfectly still."

Janeway: "Tell me what's happened."
The Doctor talks as he treats her: "Voyager has been infected by a macrovirus."
Janeway: "Macrovirus."
Doctor: "A form of life I've never encountered or even imagined."
Janeway: "What about the crew?"
Doctor: "Captain, I promise I will tell you exactly what happened if you just lie still."

Doctor: "Shortly after you'd left for the Tak Tak homeworld we received a distress call from a nearby mining colony, a race called the Garans. They were experiencing what appeared to be a minor viral outbreak."

Chakotay and a Garan miner are communicating via a monitor display in Sickbay.
Garan miner: "Fever, disorientation. I think it's some kind of virus, nothing serious, but if we don't stop it now we'll be forced to shut down the operation."
Chakotay: "We may be able to help you. Doctor?"
Doctor: "A synthetic antigen may do the trick. However, it will have to be modified for the specific virus. I'd like to beam down to the mining colony and examine a few of the infected."
Chakotay: "An away mission?"
Doctor: "I'm the only member of the crew who can successfuly enter a contaminated environment without risk. Besides, I've been looking forward to spreading my wings."
Chakotay: "Good enough." To the Garan miner: "It'll take us about 3 hours to reach you."
Garan miner: "Thank you, Commander. I don't think we'll be going anywhere."
Chakotay closes contact and leaves.
Doctor to Kes: "Prepare to download my program into the autonomous emitter."
Kes: "Yes, Doctor."

USS Voyager reaches the Garan planet.
Tuvok: "They're not responding to our hails."
Chakotay: "Lifesigns?"
Kim: "There's a lot of bio-electric interference. I can't get a clear reading."
Doctor: "Perhaps their condition is more serious than they thought. I'd better get down there."
Chakotay: "Doctor, don't forget, you're not invulnerable. If anything happens to that portable emitter, you're program could be lost."
Doctor: "Don't worry, Commander. I've been studying Starfleet guidelines for away team members. For this particular scenario, medical emergency on alien terrain, it is recommended that we keep an open com. channel at all times."
Chakotay to Tuvok: "You heard the man."
Tuvok: "Channel open."

The Doctor beams down into the mining colony. transporter He and Chakotay converse via comms.

Doctor: "Away team to Voyager. Transport was successful and my portable emitter is working perfectly. I am scanning the mineshaft and proceeding on vector 147. Ambient temperature is 16°Celsius. Cavern illumination is mininal but that shouldn't pose a problem for my optical sensors. The cave walls are comprised of granite with a mixture of pyroclastic-"
Chakotay: "Doctor, I appreciate your attention to detail but we don't need that much information." On the Bridge he moves to the helm. "Let us know when you've found the miners."

Doctor: "Oh, very well. Stand by then. Voyager, I've found one of the miners. He appears from the advanced stages of severe viral infection."
Chakotay: "Can you treat him?"
Doctor: "Not without a more specialised immunising agent. This is curious. The virus has begun to concentrate in a region near his neck and it's using his glandular tissue to create some kind of orifice. Something is emerging. A lifeform! Commander, I think I've just discovered a completely new form of life! From what I can tell, it appears to be a macroscopic version of the virus."
Chakotay: "You mean the virus has grown?"
Doctor: "Yes, by a factor of billions. The virus absorbed the miner's growth hormones into its protein structure and used them to increase its own mass and dimensions. In essence the virus has found a way to leave the microscopic world and enter the macroscopic world, our world. It's a remarkable evolutionary development. The virus appears to be attracted to infrared radiation. It's mistaking my holomatrix for body heat. At the moment this one's approximately .5 millimetres in diameter but it's continuing to grow at a rate of 30 microns every second! Commander, permission to beam the virus aboard for further analysis."
Chakotay, quickly and firmly: "No, the virus isn't in our database. The biofilters might not recognise it. You'll have to settle for tricorder data."
Doctor: "Very well. But I think I should-" A Garan miner staggers his way. "Stand by, Voyager. Hold on, stop!"
Garan miner: "You, you've got to help us."
Doctor: "I intend to. But first I must return to my ship and prepare an antidote."
Garan miner: "Take me with you!"
Doctor: "I'm afraid that's not possible. We'd risk infecting the crew."
Garan miner: "You can't leave me. Please."
Doctor: "Commander Chakotay, perhaps if we established a forcefield around Sickbay and beamed the victims directly to-"
Chakotay: "Sorry, but we can't take the chance."
Doctor: "But these people need-"
Chakotay: "Doctor! Away team guidelines specifically forbid the transport of unknown infectious-"
Doctor: "'-of unknown infectious agents onto a starship without establishing containment and eradication protocols.' I understand." To the miner: "I'll do my best to help you." To the ship: "Away team to Voyager. One to beam up."

The Doctor is beamed aboard. transporter Once aboard he moves to the transporter console. "Doctor to bridge. Checking the biofilters. It appears several viral organisms were beamed up as well. The biofilter's isolated them."
Chakotay: "Purge the filters!"
Doctor: "Aye, sir. Purging is complete. I'll be in Sickbay."

Doctor: "What I didn't realise was that in the few seconds it took me to purge the filters some of the virus had already migrated into the transporter buffer."

Sickbay.
Chakotay: "Any luck?"
Doctor: "I'm creating a synthetic antigen that will inhibit the virus' ability to replicate but I haven't quite figured out how to restore the infected cells to their original condition. As for the larger versions of the viruses, what I've termed the macrovirus I would suggest a fly-swatter."
Chakotay: "How long before the antigen's ready?"
Doctor: "I'd say another 12 hours."
Chakotay: "That gives us time to rendezvous with the Captain. We'll deal with this after she's aboard."

Doctor: "Commander, I'd like to apologise for my over-zealous behaviour on the away mission. Compassion is nothing to feel sorry about, Doctor. It won't be the last time you're faced with a moral dilemma in the field. But if it makes you feel any better, your performance was exemplary."
Doctor: "Thank you."
Chakotay leaves.

Kes: "I told you he'd understand."
Doctor: "Yes, you did."

Doctor: "We continued working on the antigen. Unfortunately the macrovirus was working faster. It had already moved from the transporter buffer into an adjacent system."

In the Messhall there are a number of crewmembers. Torres arrives.
Paris: "B'Elanna, thank God you're here. The natives are getting restless."
Torres: "What's the emergency?"

Paris: "I volunteered to help out while Neelix is away on the trade mission. The heating array overloaded. It incinerated a 12 kilo pot roast and all the food replicators went offline."
Torres: "Mmm, looks delicious. Maybe there's a problem with the bio-neural gel-pack in the replicator panel."

Paris follows her over to the replicator: "Actually, I'm a pretty good cook when engineering's doing its job."
Torres: "So this is MY fault?"
Paris: "Well, the gel-packs are your department, aren't they? Besides what was I supposed to tell all these hungry, irritable people?"
Torres: "You know, I think there's a plasma relay on deck 7 that really needs repair."

Torres: "You know, I think there's a plasma relay on deck 7 that really needs repair."
Paris: "Oh no. You can't leave me now, Lieutenant."
Torres: "Oh, you need me." Sarcastically: "I'm touched."

Torres and Paris look behind the replicator's maintenance access panel.
Torres: "What's going on here? Looks like this gel-pack has an infection. Half the neurons have been burned out and the pack is filled with some kind of mucilaginous compound. Tom, call the Doctor and tell him-"
The gel-pack bursts and covers her hand with mucilaginous compound.
Paris: "B'Elanna!"

Torres' hand, covered by mucilaginous compound. Paris touches her hand for comfort, and thereby touches some of the substance too.