Part 11 (1/2)

She ran her fingers across the flat control board, punching up two holographic images. They were of the virus, its perfect form sinister to her, as if it had already imprinted itself in her subconscious as something evil.

Kellec stood beside her, stating at the images. ”You see something here that I've missed.”

”Yes,” she said. She lowered her voice. ”These are not the same virus.”

”Katherine,” Ton said. ”I've been studying them for days. They're exactly the same.”

”No,” she said. ”I double-checked your work and Narat's. You examined the viruses at first and thought they were the same. The computer reported that they were as well. From that point on, you've only been working with one form of the virus, pulled from the same culture.”

He frowned at her, then peered at the images. He touched the control pad, making the images larger. ”I don't see the difference.”

”It's subtle,” she said, ”and this system, sophisticated as it is, isn't calibrated for such tiny differences. Apparently, Carda.s.sian medicine is a lot more straightforward than the types we practice in the Federation.” He glanced at her, obviously not following. ”These systems,” she said, ”are designed for Carda.s.sian physiology only. And why shouldn't they be? Even though several species come through Terok Nor, most everything here is geared toward Carda.s.sians. On stars.h.i.+ps, and throughout the Federation, we're dealing with a wide variety of species all the time. Small things infinitesimal things-can sometimes mean the difference between life and death.”

”All right,” he said. ”What infinitesimal thing have I missed?”

She pointed to the image on the left. ”This is Virus B, the virus that's killing the Bajorans.” She punched in a label that ran across the bottom. Then she pointed to the image on the right. ”This is Virus C, the one that's killing the Carda.s.sians.”

Kellec peered at both screens. Then he made them larger. ”I must be tired,” he said. ”I can't see the difference.”

”You are tired,” she said. ”This is why I want us all to have a few hours of sleep a day. But that's beside the point. Look here.”

She pointed to a single strand on Virus B's DNA.

”Now,” she said, ”compare it to the same strand on Virus C's DNA.”

He closed his eyes and brought the heel of his hand to his forehead. ”How could I have missed that?”

”You weren't looking for it,” she said. ”They look so much alike-'”

”Don't make excuses for me, Katherine. I should have caught it.” ”Why? You thought the viruses were the same.” ”But they manifested differently.”

”Yes,” she said, ”and that's completely logical given the differences between Carda.s.sian and Bajoran physiology.”

”But Carda.s.sians and Bajorans don't get the same diseases. We all know that.”

It wasn't like Kellec to go into recriminations. He was exhausted. She had to get him focused on something else. ”You brought me in here for a new perspective.” ”Yes,” he said. ”I did.” ”Well, I have more.”

He frowned. ”This is the part you were reluctant to tell me.”

She nodded. ”And frankly, I'm relieved Narat isn't here. Are you sure we can talk here without being overheard?” ”No one out there is listening,” Ton said. ”And Dukat?”

Kellec shrugged. ”I don't know. I don't think he would be. It's not the way he usually does things.”

”Good,” she said.

”Why?”

She took a deep breath. ”Because Virus B, found in the Bajorans, is mutating into Virus C and killing Carda.s.sians.”

Instantly Kellec's face went white; then he did the same thing she had been doing. He quickly checked around him to make sure no Carda.s.sians had heard. If this information got out, Pulaski didn't know what Dukat would do with the news. But from the reports she had heard, she doubted he would stop short at wiping out most of the Bajoran people to stop this.

”How can you be sure it's not the other way around?” Kellec asked.

She punched up a different image. ”Watch,” she said.

She had a time-lapsed image of the Bajoran cultures that Kellec and Narat had been using. Over a period of a few days, the Bajoran virus mutated. She highlighted the new viruses in red.

”What made you look for that?” he asked.

”I saw how closely they were related. I knew we weren't dealing with a coincidence. Kellec, you and Narat are right. This is an artificially created virus.”

”You mean it's designed to go from Bajoran to Carda.s.sian?”

She nodded.

He gripped the back of the nearest chair. ”If the Carda.s.sians find out about this-”

”They'll wipe out every Bajoran they can find,” she said. ”And it will kill the Carda.s.sian source of infection.”

”You can't condone that!” he said.

”Of course not. But the Carda.s.sians strike me as the kind of people who can justify such a thing.”

Kellec sank into his chair. ”I don't know what we do now, Katherine. We need this information to find a cure. But I want to wipe it all off the system.”

”I already have,” she said. ”These are my files, coded to me only.”

”That's precisely the thing that will get you in trouble with Dukat.”

”I know.” She touched the screen and the images disappeared. ”But since I destroyed the material, he can't accuse me of spying, now can he?”

”Katherine, we needed that.”

She shook her head. ”It's enough to know it. The comparisons are gone, that's all. We have the knowledge. Now we have to use it.”

”Swear to me you won't tell Narat.” ”I wish we could,” she said. ”He has a keen mind.” ”It's also a Carda.s.sian mind.”

”I know that too. And for that reason, I won't say a word.”

Kellec squeezed her arm. ”Thank you, Katherine.”

”Don't thank me yet,” she said. ”We haven't found a cure.”

”But we're one step closer than we were before you arrived. Narat and I never would have found that.”

”You would have,” she said.

”Just not in time.” Kellec pushed his chair closer to the console. ”At least now I have a bit of hope.”