BLOOD FEVER
Episode 58
Part C

 

Torres picks herself up. Paris goes over to her: "Are you hurt?" She stamps around furiously. She yells at Neelix: "You, you almost got us both killed!" Neelix: "I'm sorry! I don't know what happened." Paris to Neelix, getting out his tricorder to scan him: "Careful. Careful. You might have broken it." Torres shouts: "You had no business rigging safety equipment when you had no idea what you were doing!"

Paris to Torres: "Calm down! This wasn't Neelix's fault. I saw him drive the piton and it was solid. It must've malfunctioned." To Neelix: "You are hurt."

Torres continues to yell, berating them: "I'm fine, no thanks to you two! I would've been better coming down here alone!" Paris: "Don't you think you're overreacting a little bit?"

Torres crossly: "Just drag him to the ship. I'll get the gallicite myself." Neelix: "We can't leave you down here alone!" Paris: "He's right. Let's contact the ship." He tries to stop her leaving. Torres: "You get your hands off of me."

Suddenly she bites his left cheek. Paris: "Argh! B'Elanna! What is wrong with you?!"

Torres, her eyes strangely alight: "Nothing. I'm in charge of this mission. I'll finish it." She stomps out of the cave chamber along the passageway. Paris: "Wait!" But she ignores him.

Neelix: "Go ahead, Tom. I'll be alright here."

Paris, still nursing the painful bite on his cheek, which has drawn blood, lets out a sigh of frustration, then decides. "The last thing we need is for all three of us to split up." He taps his combadge. combadge "Paris to Voyager. We've got problems down here." After explaining the situation: "I haven't been able to contact her. She's either out of communications range, or just not responding."

Janeway, via comms: "Where is she now?"

Paris, via comms, using his tricorder: "Last location I can verify is about ten metres below us. I tried to stop her from leaving, Captain, but she got very hostile and...." he hesitates a moment, "bit me."

Chakotay: "She bit you???"

Tuvok is disturbed by the last piece of information.

Paris, via comms: "And she seemed to be enjoying it, in a Klingon kind of way. She's really not herself." Janeway asks the Ops officer: "Any luck in getting a transporter lock on them?" Ensign Lang: "No. They're too far beneath the surface."

Janeway: "Tom, I'm sending an away team down to you." Chakotay gets up to go and lead the away mission. "We'll get Neelix out of there, then go after B'Elanna. Tuvok, you're with Chakotay." Tuvok: "Captain, I'd like to request a short delay. I may have an explanation for Lieutenant Torres' behaviour."

Vorik is in his quarters, meditating. door signal The door signal sounds. Vorik: "Go away." The door opens. standard doors He turns and shouts: "I said, go away!"

He sees it is Tuvok and manages to regain control. "I'm sorry, sir." Tuvok enters. "No, I must apologise for the intrusion, particularly at this time." Vorik: "Then you know?" Tuvok: "Yes. I regret that I must ask you some uncomfortable questions regarding Lieutenant Torres." Vorik: "Yes, sir."

Tuvok: "It is important for me to know specifically what happened between the two of you. Was there any physical contact?" Vorik: "Yes." Tuvok: "Please describe your actions."

Vorik: "It's hard to remember. I was acting irrationally. I believe I approached her. I touched her face. I meant to be gentle, but she tried to move away, and then I was holding her more tightly, both hands on her face like this." He cups his hands to illustrate. "It felt very important not to let go. I’m, I'm not certain why." Tuvok: "I believe you were initiating a telepathic mating bond." Vorik: "I didn't know it could happen that way. I wanted to bond with her, that much I remember clearly." Tuvok: "Apparently you succeeded. Lieutenant Torres has been displaying unusual behaviour, very much like the early stages of Pon farr."

Vorik: "How is that possible? She's not Vulcan." Tuvok: "There have been instances of Vulcans mating with members of other races." Vorik: "But she rejected me forcefully." Tuvok: "Even a brief moment of bonding may have been enough to disrupt her self-control, as the Pon farr does in us. In a half-Klingon, the effects may be even more extreme." Vorik heads towards the door: "I have to go to her."

Tuvok's words stop him. "You cannot. Lieutenant Torres is out of contact, on the planet." Vorik: "I'll find her. B'Elanna needs me and I need her." Tuvok: "It is a far more sensible strategy to get her safely back to Voyager, and then decide on the proper resolution." Vorik: "The resolution must be that we become mates. It is only logical." Tuvok: "Lieutenant Torres has never been a great follower of logic." Vorik: "You think she'll reject me again?" Tuvok: "It might be wise to continue your meditative efforts." Vorik: "I'll do my best, sir." The conversation over, Tuvok leaves without another word.

Chakotay and Tuvok have beamed down to the planet surface and met up with Paris and Neelix underground. Tuvok, after checking his tricorder, puts it away.

Tuvok: "It is difficult to estimate how soon her condition will become life threatening."

Paris: "Life-threatening? She could die from this?" Tuvok: "Yes." Paris: "And you've gone through it every seven years of your adult life?" Tuvok: "You only need to be concerned with Lieutenant Torres' situation." Paris recognises Tuvok's block against that tangent and so acknowledges: "Right."

As Chakotay comes up: "Well, it looks like finding her won't be easy. Scanning range is limited to about twenty metres, and even that's not too reliable." Chakotay: "You said she was going after the gallicite, so we'll do the same and hope it leads us to her."

Neelix, in a harness ready to be hauled to the surface: "I'm ready to go, Commander."

They see him up to the planet surface. Chakotay: "Let's go." They proceed into the cave system to look for Torres.

 

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