—- USS Luna, Medical Bay —-

Doctor Va’Tok looked up from his PADD as Klar entered. The Klingon First Officer seemed in a horrid mood, but then again the Vulcan was not an expert on human (or Klingon) moods. It simply struck him as if Klar was always some form of upset. Switching off his desktop screen he nodded in acknowledgement of the First Officer’s arrival, ”How may I help you?”

“We have the senior staff meeting,” Klar said.

”At nineteen hundred hours,“ Va’Tok said.

”I want an update,” Klar barked.

The Vulcan nodded, patience would do the Klingon well, as an update would be more informative in a short while at the staff meeting when it would be more efficient to brief the entire senior staff and not just the First Officer. Still Va’Tok understood that the Klingon wanted to address this issue like he did most others and that was head on and often with a head butt. 

“We have two dead officers, both security officers, Ensigns Nabana and Claymore who were stabbed in on deck three. We found Lieutenant Acharya on the station and she’s in critical condition, as is Chief Breasi,” Va’Tok said, “Doctor Elordi is in charge of their care.”

The Klingon nodded, “Good work.“

”Now if you will excuse me I have more work to do before our senior crew meeting,” Doctor Va’Tok said.

”So much of this book keeping all logging who died, it must feel exhausting,” Klar noted.

”It is important work, and cannot be overlooked,” Va’Tok said.

The Klingon smiled. One of the ridges on his forhead seemed to shift downward as if melting. The Vulcan noticed this and Klar noticed him noticing. It was over in a second, as Klar’s hand formed into a bladed weapon and lashed out catching the Vulcan in the stomach. The other hand extended covering his mouth and keeping any calls for help from escaping from the Vulcan. When Va’Tok quit struggling, the changeling maneuvered him over to a coat locker and shoved him inside, taking his comm badge and applying it to his own uniform which had changed to be a medical one. The changeling’s entire appearance now was of that of the doctor as he exited the office and entered the main part of sickbay. 

There he saw the doctors and nurses working on the victims, and wanted to finish the job but it needed to keep up this ruse a bit longer, it had bigger targets that the USS Luna’s Chief Medical Officer and getting into that senior crew meeting was vital. Information about counter measures being used against it was worth its weight in whatever these solids used for currency these days.

—- USS Luna, Briefing Room —-

The senior officers took their seats, as Captain Adriana Cruz updated them on conversations she had been having with Starfleet.

”The fleet won’t intervene with the Romulan government, they see this ship as infected and unless we catch the changeling the Romulans are going to destroy the Luna tomorrow then the Warbird arrives,” Cruz said.

Romulan advisor S’anra Navan nodded, the Sub-Lieutenant adding, “They won’t send away teams over the ship they are sending will simply destroy this vessel.”

Cruz looked around, “Where is Klar? It’s not like him to be late. Lieutenant Jara send a security team to his quarters. Va’Tok send a nurse and doctor with them.”

The changeling appearing as Va’Tok nodded, and tapped the comm badge, “Medical send a team to do a wellness check on First Officer Klar.”

Cruz nodded, “How are efforts to capture the changeling?”

”We have doubled up security on all dangerous areas, as well as the Runabouts so it can’t escape. Only you have the authority to have them stand down,” Lieutenant Jara said. 

The captain nodded, “Thank you. Anything from science on updates to scanners?”

Lieutenant Commander Gabriella Miller shook her head, “Without a sample to the DNA we have nothing to go on and any adjustments we make would simply be guessing at changes rather than acting on the situation.”

”Doctor Va’Tok do we have any DNA or anything left behind at the scenes?” Cruz asked.

He shook his head, “No, we have prioritized saving lives over evidence collection but also we have not found any DNA in our scans other than that of the victims’.”

Cruz groaned, “So to summarize the Romulans arrive in a few hours and we’re no closer to catching this thing than we were. How are the crew Kolem?”

Chief Counselor Yuhiro Kolem sighed, “Scared, professional but scared. They don’t know the extent of the issue, or about the Romulans, but people know there’s a changeling killing people.”

Va’Tok’s badge beeped, “Va’Tok here.”

”Doctor, we have Klar in serious condition, taking him into surgery now,” a nurse reported.

The room was quiet. Everyone was thinking that if Klar could be taken out, the large Klingon warrior, then anyone could.

”Let’s work the problem people, nobody wants to see me beg in front of a bunch of Romulans tomorrow,” Cruz said, “Meeting adjourned.”

As the meeting broke up Doctor Va’Tok waited for the Captain, “I did not want to raise it during the meeting, but I had something in my office to show you. It is a sensitive matter.”

Cruz nodded, “Of course, I assume Klar’s being taken care of.”

”My staff are all experts, they are attending to him better than I could be,” Va’Tok said. 

The pair walked to the doctor’s office in the medical bay, and it was clear that work was being done in one of the surgeries. Captain Cruz did not want to interrupt. She generally liked Klar and wanted him to pull through. She entered the doctor’s spacious office with its neat desk devoid of clutter.

”What did you have doctor?” she asked turning in time to see a hypnospray pressing against her neck. She heard a hiss and then suddenly euphoric and strange. Lights seemed brighter, blindingly so as the doctor, or the changeling now she guessed, guided her to a seat.

”The first drug is something the Romulans developed that I brought with me. It makes you euphoric, so you feel so good you’ll do anything I ask. Now Captain what’s the code to take the runabouts?” the doctor who was now shifting away from looking like Va’Tok and into his true form asked.

”London Six Bravo Nine,” Cruz said and smiled.

The changeling nodded and injected her with another drug, “This is a paralytic, to keep you still and from calling out. I wanted to take my time with you but the arrival of a Warbird means I need to leave now. But the nice thing if the drug doesn’t dull your senses, you’ll feel yourself slowly dying.“

It took her comm badge, “Unable to do anything about it. Other than think about how I’ll arrive on Earth one day and kill there. I’ll take a route, it may take years but I’ll pay your family a visit. It’s what I was made for after all, killing human solids.”

From Va‘Tok’s desk it took a surgical laser and activated it, cutting through the uniform on Cruz and then her skin. She simply sat there, unable to respond in anyway as he did unable to move of make a sound.

”I’d have liked to take more time on this,” the changeling grinned, “Get to know you better, before destroying everything you hold dear. Take care Captain Cruz, for the short time you have left.”

The changeling shifted into Captain Cruz and put on the comm badge, she smiled at herself bleeding in the chair and then turned, exiting the sick bay. To the nearest nurse she said, “Doctor Va’Tok is working on a special project for me, please see that he’s not disturbed.”

”Of course ma’am,” the nurse said as the captain headed to the hanger bay.