*Action* - Keto Creates Cure For Bird Flu

Who: Keto, Tara, Rufus, Wildflower, Other Medibay Occupants
Where: The relocated medibay
When: After Team Vespidae and the other teams return(ed) from their
away missions
(Yes, I'm aware that this may be jumping ahead a little, but things
seem to be moving along rather quickly and I think we need to catch
up. Feel free to fill in the gaps if you like.)
================================================
<<SNIP>>
A few hours later, Rufus was coming around from the operation. It had
gone well and now Rufus had a large plaster cast on his leg, from foot
to thigh, underneath which was a set of titanium pins holding the
bones in place so they grew. Tara was hopeful that it would mend well,
but she had a feeling that he would be left with a limp.
<<END SNIP>>
There was the sound of stamping feet marching up the corridor outside
the new medibay. Tara and Wildflower half-turned to face the doors,
recognising the unmistakeable sound.
"What," came the voice from outside, echoing up the corridor.
"Did," it said, its owner drawing nearer to the doorway.
"You," said the silhouette that showed dimly through the translucent
surface of the door.
"DO," snarled Keto, gripping the edge of the door and slamming it
open, motors whirring as it tried to compensate.
"TO!" he yelled, storming towards the now worried-looking pair of
medical staff.
"MY!" he bellowed, red-faced, an expression of fury stretched across
his face.
"MEDIBAY!?" he finished, glaring eyes mere inches from those of Tara
and Wildflower.
There was a long pause, its silence only broken by Keto's deep angry
breathing. Finally, Wildflower coughed.
"We...moved it?" she said.
"Oh REALLY?" asked Keto, glare deepening as his voice grew cold and
restrained, "You moved the medibay? Well, well, well. Fancy that. I
hadn't noticed. I may have wandered around the place that it used to
be for an hour or so, looking for what could have happened to my
medibay which, you may not have realised, has never before decided to
travel. I may have been harassed by a large number of irate
crewmembers, asking me what had happened to the medibay and why they
couldn't get their treatments. I may have made a dozen solemn vows to
kill whoever was responsible for this mess and, yes, in the small
hours of the night I may have even entertained some hazy nightmares
that you, of all people, might have been responsible. You moved the
medibay, you say? I KNOW YOU MOVED THE MEDIBAY, YOU CRETINOUS WASTE
OF PUTRID BREATHING SPACE! I WANT TO KNOW WHY! I WANT TO HEAR YOUR
PATHETIC EXCUSES COME SPEWING FORTH FROM THAT CAVERNOUS AND
NEVER-SILENT CHASM THAT YOU CALL A MOUTH! I WANT TO AT LEAST TRY AND
UNDERSTAND WHY YOU MOVED MY MEDIBAY BEFORE I EJECT YOU FROM AN AIRLOCK
ONE CUBIC INCH AT A TIME! WHY DID YOU MOVE MY MEDIBAY!?!"
"We thought it would be funny," admitted Wildflower, glancing briefly
at Tara who, she thought to herself, was doing a remarkable job of
handling all of this given that she hadn't been aware of the
relocation at the time.
Keto stopped, blinked, stared.
"You thought it would be funny," he repeated in a puzzled tone of voice.
"Yes."
"...oh," said Keto, "Well, that...that's not...I..."
"And it was!" supplied Wildflower, cheerfully. This only served to
nonplus Keto more, his mouth opening and closing for a few moments.
"Get out," he managed at last, turning away from Wildflower and
pointing one arm at the door, "Get out of my medibay. I can't deal
with you right now. Out."
"Okay. I'll go and find the Tree. It'll want to know how well you
took the joke," said Wildflower with a grin, heading towards the door
and waving. Keto stared vacantly at the floor until she had left.
"Cleavage," he said at last, causing Tara to take a hesitant step
forwards, "Please inform me that the last week has been some sort of
wretched, fevered nightmare. No, wait, make that the last couple of
years."
"I'm afraid not."
"Yes, that's what I feared. Very well," sighed Keto, "I believe that
we now have in our possession all of the ingredients necessary for the
bird flu cure and vaccinations. Pass me samples of ointments 19, 714
and 16A2, assuming that pathetic nurse has not rearranged my labels
'for a laugh'. We have work to do."
While Tara turned and hurriedly began to look through Keto's chaotic
ointment stock, the doctor wandered into his office (his 'new' office,
he inwardly corrected himself), sat down and allowed his head to fall
forward onto his desk.
"I hate everyone's life," he murmured.
----------------------
Several Hours Later...
----------------------
"Don't drop that," warned Keto sternly as Tara gingerly picked up the
large vial of sparkling ointment, "I don't relish the thought of
having to go through all of this ever again. Get that transported up
to the captain, I'm told he has some troublesome birds to deal with.
One part per billion of that dispersed in water and then ingested
should cure the disease and vaccinate against any future outbreaks.
Get some of the monkeys that like to be called part of the crew to
take it down to New France, hook it into the global water purifiers
and everyone should turn back to normal, or at least normally
abnormal. Don't let anybody drink a mouthful of that concoction neat,
though."
"Why not?" asked Tara, holding the vial up so that it glinted in the
medibay lights. Keto smiled grimly.
"Because the mops aboard this ship aren't made for cleaning up melted
human innards. Go."
Tara headed for the door, holding the vial at arms length. Keto took
a second, much smaller vial of the liquid out of his laboratory coat
pocket.
"And this," he murmured to himself, "Is for our dear ambassador. One
drop in his chicken water, and he'll return to being human. Naked,
vulnerable and locked away in a cage, but human."
Keto paused, then stopped to grab a camera before heading for the door.
"Naked, vulnerable, locked away in a cage and subject to blackmail,
but human," he corrected himself as the door slid shut behind him.
===================
OOC: Tag people. Cure's available now, we just need to get it
distributed. :) We need some people to take the cure down to New
France, put it in the water purifiers and leg it. Go go go.
- Chris (JHXMT)
Note: This Action was posted at moderator request.