Is There A Doctor In The House? "
By: Dr. James McIntyre , Doctor , [NPC]
Krystal, Hologram, [RNPC]
Maxine Lucinda Tapert, Computer Specialist, [PC]

Stardate: 58208.12 1930

Maxine had gone straight to her quarters after leaving the computer core. She hadn't even bothered to contact Engineering and request them to turn the power back on in her room. She'd simply fallen onto the bed and once there, didn't move. It was a toss-up as to whether she'd passed out first, or throw up, but in the end oblivion took her and eventually she fell into a dreamless sleep.

It was the pounding in her head that woke her nearly twelve hours later. It nearly negated the churning of her stomach, but didn't quite manage to pull it off. Between the two sensations, she moaned lightly and tried to roll over. The movement had her clutching her hand to her mouth and stumbling to the fresher. There was nothing worse than being sick to your stomach when there wasn't anything in it.

"Maxie... Are you okay?" Krystal's small voice asked, however the AI program didn't activate its holographic avatar. The PADD attached to Maxine's belt allowed the program to communicate with its creator.

"..no.. I dun think so.." Max managed to answer. "..m'goin' to sickbay.." she added as she stumbled towards the door to her quarters.

"Want me to call the doctor?"

..no.."

Maxine managed to make it out of her quarters and headed towards sickbay with a tiny trail of dust as the nearly invisible pixie kept just inside the projection area of the portable holoemitter in Max's hair. She had to keep a hand on the wall and when she got into the turbolift she thought she was going to be sick again, but she finally made it to sickbay and stumbled inside.

"IS THERE A DOCTOR IN THE HOUSE????"

Krystal popped into view right next to Max's head as the little pixie called out at the top of her voice. The computer specialist groaned and covered her ears. She closed her eyes and then opened one to peek around, ready to duck back out of sickbay if she spotted Dane.

From one of the offices, a man appeared and introduced himself, "I'm Doctor McIntyre," he said pausing to study Krystal a moment. "You must be Maxine Tappert."

Maxine breathed a sigh of relief that it wasn't Dane. She honestly didn't think she could look the woman in the eye after that dream she'd had. "..yeah..." she agreed. The eyes that looked up at him were filled with the pain throbbing through her head.

"Dane has told me about this cute little holographic avatar you have," he said returning his gaze to Krystal.

"I'm Krystal," the pixie answered and grinned at him, wiggling her fingers in greeting. "Maxie's broken," she informed him. "She cut her head, and she's been sleeping all day, and she got sick, and she gets mad when I talk too loud, and---"

"..ssstt..." Max started to raise her hand and the little pixie stopped talking and gave the doctor a pathetic look. "..m-migraine.." she told him.

"Please," said McIntyre with a voice of concern as he gestured toward the biobed.

As she laid down on the bed, it automatically began to scan her. He picked up the PADD which controlled the bed and displayed the results and looked at it.

"You seem to have suffered a mild concussion, you have quite a bump on your head," said McIntyre, "How did you get that?"

"..uuhhh..." Maxine frowned in thought. "..it started at the pixie orgy... I bumped my head on the underside of the bed," she began to explain.

For a moment, McIntyre worried whether differentiate between reality and fantasy. He paused for a moment as he regarded the holographic faery and concluded that anything was possible.

"It wasn't an orgy," Krystal protested. "I just wanted some friends," she told the doctor, her voice sounding so sad and pathetic.

"..crikey.." Max groaned softly and gave the pixie a -look-. "..y'should probably be quiet pixie," she warned and looked back to McIntyre. "..then I... something happened in the computer core... ..it started with my implant.." she reached up and scratched the red swollen area around it. "..I must have fallen asleep or something.. There was a really bright flash of light and I don't remember anything except I had this horrible nightmare.. I woke up when I fell on the floor. I think that's when I got the cut."

McIntyre continued to read the scans, "Why did you wait so long before coming in?" he asked?

"..I was going to come... But... I.. uh.. think I fell asleep.." she answered.

"Crashed and burned," Krystal nodded and made some appropriate noises to go along with it.

McIntyre frowned dramtically and in one quick motion peeled off the dermal adhesive that was saturated with dried blood.

"Ow..." Max winced and looked up at him.

"Your neural implant," said McIntyre as he activated a dermal regenerator, "its the work of Doctor Werner isn't it?"

"..uhhh... yeah. It is... uhm... Is it okay?" she asked a little hesitantly.

McIntyre sighed, "I hate to be the bearer of bad news but some of the neural interface filaments are carbon scored. There is active hemolytic activity as well as some hemorrhagic lesions in this region."

"Uht-oh," Krystal shook her head and tsk-tsk'd. "That's bad..."

He set the scanner down, "I hope you didn't have plans for tonight."

"..uhhhh... well... I was going to work on Krystal..." Max told him hesitantly. "..c-can y'fix it?"

"I can repair some of it, but my advice would be not to use the interface and let it cool a bit."

Max concentrated for a moment as she tested the interface and then her forehead creased with the backlash of pain. "..I can't even activate it," she told him. "..I start to get that blinding flash of light when I do."

The Doctor nodded, "I'm sure. Look, I can give you something for the pain but I'll need to keep you here for observation overnight. Tomorrow we'll do procedure to stablize and repair some of the damage.

"..uhhh..." Maxine tried to look around without moving her head too much or sitting up. She lowered her voice to a whisper when she continued and looked like she was trying to be covert. "..Dr. Dane's not around.... is she?"

"She doesn't want to run into her," Krystal whispered helpfully.

McIntyre raised his eyebrow and turned to the holographic A.I. "Why not?"

Krystal cupped her hands around her mouth and then told him in a stage whisper, "Because she was in her nightmare. Maxie was a bad girl."

Max blinked and actually blushed. "..'ow the 'ell do y'know that?" she asked.

"You talk in your sleep," Krystal told her in a very normal tone of voice.

Mixine groaned and reached up to rub her forehead, wincing when her fingers accidentally bumped her knot. "..crikey.."

"She was delirious," Krystal informed the doctor.

"A Nightmare? About Dane?" he asked, trying to keep from appearing amuzed.

"..uhh... no... yes... not really," Maxine stuttered. "..uhh... it was more about the computer running amuck," she tried to explain. "..and the doctor uh..."

"Got attacked by the possessed EMH," Krystal added helpfully and then lowered her voice to a whisper, "Maxie was inside the computer," she confided.

"..oh my god... pixie... shut up!" Max groaned and rubbed her eyes.

McIntyre held up the hypospray, "do you want something for the pain?"

"..uhhh...." Maxine looked at the hypospray a little suspiciously. "..will it kill off the spastic Klingon blood worms that are in there?"

"It will make things a little quieter in your head."

"..then yes please. Quieter would be much better." Maxine was definitely ready for things to be quiet inside her head.

McIntyre pressed the hypo against her neck. He monitored her vitals as the drugs began to work.

Maxine let out a heartfelt sigh of relief and slowly closed her eyes. "..oh yes... that is much better..." she murmured softly as the out of tune symphony of drums in her head and the Klingon blood worms all began to lessen.

"Is she going to go to sleep now?" Krystal asked the doctor in a hushed tone.

He nodded, "probably, she needs it after all."

"Is she going to die?" Krystal asked him as she fluttered in the air nearby. She was a very solid looking hologram.

"Of course not." said McIntyre as if he were talking to a child, "but she has been pushing herself too hard and has hurt some of her hardware."

"Oh.. That's not good," Krystal shook her head sadly. "Can I stay here?"

"If you promise to behave," advised the Doctor.

"Oh yes! I promise!" She nodded her head vigorously and pixie dust went everywhere within the projection radius of Max's portable holoemitters. "Can I access the holoemitters in sickbay? Please? I promise to be good!"

"Very well, what is your process descriptor id?"

"PIXIE-597-01," she told him proudly.

"Computer, grant medical H-E access to process PIXIE-597-01 authorization McIntyre Gamma-1-Gamma-6-korova."

"WEEEEEEEEE!!! I'm freeeeee!" She buzzed around sickbay and around McIntyre, leaving a trail of pixie dust wherever she went and finally wound up back at the doctor to press a golden pixie dust infused holographic kiss on his cheek. "Thank you!" Then she giggled.

McIntyre looked around nervously.

"You promised to behave," reminded McIntyre, "that means acting professional at all times. This isn't a pixie-playland."

"OH!! I know!!!" She giggled and poofed into a tiny nurses outfit, complete with an old fashioned stethoscope. "I'll help! What is the nature of your emergency?" she asked him seriously and then giggled a little.

McIntyre covered his eyes and wondered if he had made a career mistake. He checked the status on Maxine. Her brainwave patterns indicated she was sleeping soundly.

"Alright, come with me, we need to do some research on Maxine's condition."

"Aye aye, sir!" she saluted him smartly and wiggled her antennae as she flew along side him. "I like research," she told him. "It's what I do, you know. I'll make a really good assistant," she nodded. "You'll see. You'll want me to come back," she giggled and nattered on. "I got to be a doctor once. And had a patient too."