The Frontier by Laurel Richards

Author:Laurel Richards
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: SFR, sci-fi romance, alien planet, space opera, animal attacks, medical drama, hunting
Publisher: Laurel Richards
Published: 2023-01-24T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 6

If there was one thing Darren hated, it was feeling powerless. Although Lilah had called him the night before when she’d reached the road crew, she hadn’t been in touch all day. He couldn’t be there with her as she faced whatever dangerous animal was stalking humans. As for his patient, Tyrone had suffered recurring seizures before slipping into a coma late that morning.

“Let’s look at the symptoms,” he told Gary. “The patient complained of severe headaches and light sensitivity. When his girlfriend tried to encourage him to eat—which in itself suggests loss of appetite or nausea—he suffered a violent episode. We then saw a progression of fever, delirium, issues with motor control, seizures, and eventually coma. These symptoms point toward meningitis or a neurotropic virus. Whatever the cause, it’s currently hiding from our scans. So what do we know? We know we found fungal spores and bacteria in the wounds when the patient was first admitted.”

“Say it’s a fungal infection that somehow doesn’t show up in the spinal fluid,” Gary said, playing along. “What then?”

“Fungal meningitis would account for the symptoms and is consistent with what Lilah discovered in the bear,” Darren said. “Fungi and humans are very similar at the cellular level, which might explain how the infection is hiding from the scans. The swelling is caused by the patient’s immune response. Same with the fever. His body is trying to fight off the invader.”

“If it is a fungal infection,” the nurse remarked, “we’ve got antifungal medication.”

“Not much,” Darren warned him. “We only have two antifungal medicines on hand that can counteract an internal infection. This isn’t something I’ve had to treat before, so we’re lucky we even have anything in stock. I want to be absolutely sure I’m on the right track before I use up our supply.”

“Okay,” Gary agreed, “the second option is a bacterial infection. We saw the typical flora from a bear’s mouth, but the microbes weren’t even in particularly high numbers.”

“The fungal infection in the animal’s mouth would have thrown off the normal balance of oral bacteria,” Darren mused. “Perhaps the bacteria mutated, and that’s why the computer isn’t picking up on the infection now. The new strain might be different enough to avoid detection. Bring up those swab results onscreen. I want to see a magnified visual display side by side with examples of those same bacteria from the database.”

The nurse accessed the records and presented them.

Darren stepped closer for a better look. “They appear identical, not mutated. Let me see the DNA and plasmids for these bacteria.”

Gary complied, and again he saw no differences to suggest the bacteria had evolved into a new strain.

“Scans and bloodwork would pick up on this,” he said. “This isn’t bacterial, which leaves us with a virus. The animal’s behavior was similar to that of creatures infected with rabies.”

“Rabies is transmitted through a bite,” the nurse pointed out.

“Yes,” Darren agreed. “It also occurs in a wide range of species, including humans, and it infects the central nervous system.

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