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"Chocophoria"
Rating: PG-13 The mystery deepens. What’s going on? Please read and review! Thanks! Five Doctor Phlox turned at the sound of whistling and saw Crewman Cutler come through the Sickbay doors. “Ah, you’re in a good mood, Crewman!” “I slept pretty well, Phlox,” she replied with a grin. “I guess a night off and some good chocolate works wonders.” He chuckled and said, “I did sample that piece of mokka and I found it quite pleasant indeed. It tasted like jujora, a delicious treat for Denobulan children. I remember my sister used to make it for all of the children in our family. Her recipe was very popular.” He shrugged. “I could never get the ratios quite correct, so mine never turned out as well as hers. I’m more than happy to leave the cooking to her.” Liz smiled. Phlox chatted a lot about his family back on Denobula and she always enjoyed listening to his stories. “Jujora? Can you describe what it tastes like?” He thought for a moment, then replied, “I suppose a combination of Earth’s strawberry with a hint of orange and mint would be the best way to describe it. I used to eat so much of it as a boy; I ended up with an upset stomach a lot, much to my father’s chagrin.” He laughed and shook his head. “Crewman, I wanted to inform you that those samples you wanted have arrived.” Her eyes lit up. “Oh, good! No offense, Phlox, but I’m always glad to do some work in my specialty. You don’t run into many bugs in deep space.” Phlox nodded. “No offense taken, Crewman. I’ve put them in the medical lab and set up all the equipment. Enjoy yourself.” He watched as she literally skipped to the lab, pulled open the door and disappeared into it. Her unbridled enthusiasm was contagious and he found himself humming a tune to himself. The sickbay doors opened again and Phlox turned. “Lieutenant! What can I do for you today?” Malcolm Reed winced and put a hand on his right shoulder. “I think I might have pulled a muscle in my shoulder, Doctor.” “Let me take a look at it.” Reed sat on the biobed as Phlox ran his scanner over him. “Ah, you are correct. It seems that you pulled the muscle between your shoulder and your neck. A muscle relaxer should help.” As he reached for the hypospray, he asked, “Is this the result of a training exercise?” Reed blushed. “Ah, no, not exactly, but I didn’t really notice it until I ran a few phase pistol drills with the Armory crew. That’s when it became a real bother.” “I see.” Phlox noticed that he hadn’t answered the question. Judging from the lieutenant’s coloring, it was better not to ask. “There, that should do it.” “Thank you, Doctor. It feels a lot better.” “If there are any complications, please don’t hesitate to come back.” “I won’t, Doctor.” As the morning went on, other crewmembers came in for minor ailments: upset stomachs from indulging in too much mokka the night before, minor burns from Engineering, a few bumps and bruises from off-loading mishaps in Cargo Bay Two. Phlox thought the high case of accidents was quite unusual, so he called Captain Archer. “I sent some crew members down when they complained of headaches and stomachaches,” Archer confirmed. “It seemed to pass pretty quickly and they haven’t had any problems since.” “Captain, are you feeling well?” “I’m feeling fine, Doctor. Porthos was sulking this morning because I wouldn’t give him any mokka, but other than that, he’s fine too.” The captain’s tone became concerned. “Do you think there might be something going around the crew?” “It’s difficult to say, but perhaps it is just one of those days when accidents seem to happen.” “Keep me informed, Doctor. If there is something, I’d like to be the first to know.” “Of course, Captain.” As soon as Phlox closed the com channel, he turned to see Crewman Rostov limping through the door with Commander Tucker supporting him on one side. “Mister Rostov! What has happened?” Rostov muttered something under his breath in Russian, then translated it into English. “I’m convinced that damn spanner of yours is cursed, sir. Every time I use it, it tries to eat me.” Trip couldn’t help grinning. “And you wonder why I won’t let you borrow it?” “Gentlemen,” Phlox interrupted. “Sorry, Doc.” Trip helped Rostov onto the biobed. “Mike was helping me in one of the conduits. He bumped his head on the ceiling, then slipped on a tool that was lying around—“ “That damn spanner—“ “—and it flew up and socked him in the knee. I think he whacked it pretty good.” Rostov winced as Phlox carefully pulled the right leg of his jumpsuit up to examine the bruise. “I believe the Commander’s initial impression is correct, Mister Rostov. It appears that your right knee has sustained a considerable bruise. Crewman Cutler?” “Doctor?” Liz asked as she stuck her head out of the lab. “Will you fetch a cold compress for Mister Rostov? He’s bruised his knee.” “Of course, Doctor.” Phlox worked gently but efficiently to ease Rostov’s pain. He noticed Commander Tucker’s look of concern; at least, the engineer hadn’t ended up in Sickbay today— The com went off again. “Subcommander T’Pol to Doctor Phlox.” He sighed and hit the com button with his elbow, then continued his ministrations without stopping. “Phlox here.” “I require your presence in Science Lab Two.” “Acknowledged, Subcommander. I will be there in five minutes.” “That is acceptable. T’Pol, out.” A soft hand touched his wrist. “I can handle this for you, Phlox. You go and see what the subcommander wants.” He glanced at Liz in surprise. Her hand felt warm and comforting on his skin. He knew that Liz was aware that Denobulans didn’t like being touched in a casual manner, but right now, that didn’t seem to bother him at all. In fact, it felt rather...nice. She seemed to misinterpret his gaze. “I need some practice in this kind of work, Phlox, if I’m going to be your emergency medic.” He nodded and handed her the hypospray. Of course, he really didn’t need to do so, but he found that he wanted any excuse to touch her. “Very well, Liz. Crewman Rostov, she’ll take good care of you. Just be careful in the conduits next time.” Rostov nodded and managed a grin, in spite of his pain. “Sure, Doc. I’m not touching that spanner ever again.” Tucker laughed and said, “I’m holdin’ ya to that, Mike.” As Phlox left Sickbay, he became aware of Tucker’s curious gaze at his back. For some reason, that stirred up a wave of irritation. She will be just fine, he told himself. Liz is a competent medic. I wouldn’t be surprised if she decided to become a doctor herself someday. Subcommander T’Pol sat at one of the lab computers and looked up as Phlox entered the room. “Thank you for coming so promptly, Doctor.” He nodded. “What can I help you with, Subcommander?” “Does this compound look familiar to you?” She turned the screen so he could see it clearly. “I was running a chemical analysis on the mokka that Lieutenant Sato brought from Dnayu. This is not in any database from Vulcan Medical or Starfleet Medical, and I was curious whether or not you recognized it.” Phlox studied the diagram for a long moment, then slowly shook his head. “I can’t say I’ve seen it before. Perhaps there is something in the Denobulan medical database. This was in the mokka from last night, you say?” “Yes. There was trace remnants on the foil of the candy I consumed last night. I believe it triggered a pleasant memory from my childhood, one that involved all of the senses.” “That wouldn’t surprise me, for the Dnayuns consider sensory pleasure an art, just like any other part of their culture.” He frowned. “I must admit that I experienced something like you did, Subcommander...the taste reminded me of a Denobulan sweet that my sister makes for her children.” She nodded, and Phlox thought she saw a hint of relief. “Then the effect is not unusual.” “It appears to be.” He gazed at the diagram with interest. “Do you believe there may be other hidden effects?” “Unknown, but I would like to pursue this line of inquiry further.” He smiled and reply, “Would you mind transferring your data to my office computer? I would like to assist you in this. If anything, it would satisfy my curiosity, if nothing else.” “I will do that immediately, Doctor.” “Thank you, Subcommander.” He inclined his head to her in gratitude, then left the lab. He wondered if Liz had finished treating Rostov, and if Tucker would have helped the unfortunate engineer back to his cabin... The thought brought him up short, and he frowned. What was he thinking? Liz Cutler was an attractive woman, for sure, and of course, there were a limited number of Human males on a ship of eighty-three people. He was quite fond of her, but he preferred to think of her as a friend and nothing more than that. Still...he felt another spike of unease at the thought of her alone in Sickbay with Rostov and Tucker... His steps quickened as he headed back to Sickbay. |
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