U.S.S. Fairfax, Deck 6, Morgue, 19:00 hrs

One space above all else on any starship that few enter by choice is the mortuary or morgue. However, it is absolutely one of the most necessary.

On any endeavour into the unknown, there remains a risk of mortality and therefore, a need for storage of the recently departed. Throughout history, the logistical challenge of preserving a corpse aboard vessels embarking on long voyages has necessitated the use of various methods to stave off natural decay. Lord Admiral Nelson, famously pickled in a barrel of spirits following the battle of Trafalgar. 20th-century submarines, famously lacking in space, would preserve fallen sailors in the galley freezers until they could return to port.

Fortunately for the 25th century, Mortuaries are a standard module that accompanies any sick-bay but are seldom required to be used.

Fairfax, being once converted for use as a hospital ship, was equipped with a much larger than normal mortuary. Designed to handle mass fatalities during relief operations, the room consisted of a central corridor with several floor-to-ceiling refrigerators on either side. Each of these units could store four individuals stacked one on top of the other.

Connected with the refrigeration room were two additional chambers. The first was a theatre for conducting post-mortem autopsies, the other, a sort of chapel of rest where the deceased could be placed for viewing by family in an environment that can be tailored to suit the needs of almost any species or culture.

This was the first time since the facility was equipped that it was occupied. And in a rather morbid demonstration of its capabilities, nine individuals were currently at rest within its accommodations. 

The first thing that Captain Dubois noted about the room was the smell; he had assumed that the room, having never previously been used it would have smelled fresh and clean. This couldn’t be further from the truth, as his nostrils were deeply offended first by a sort of sickly sweet smell in the air with a musty undertone – the literal odour of fermentation. Then a far more unpalatable stench; acidic and sulfurous – the odour of decomposition. Both clinged to the inside of the nostrils and the back of his throat, occasionally causing the involuntary sensation to gag and cough.

He did his best to compose himself as he walked past the refrigerators and entered the autopsy theatre where Doctor Harper was concluding his examination of one of the bodies.

“Your findings, Commander?” he choked, suddenly realising that attempting to speak only worsened the experience.

Conrad was busy using the autosuture to close the corpse on his table. Maintaining focus on the quality of his work, he finished the area he was working on before approaching a response. “The scanner revealed that the majority of the Azurak bridge crew died from disruptor blasts consistent with a Nausicaan hand disruptor,” he said, as he placed the autosuture device back on his selection tray.

“So they boarded the freighter,” Alex expressed, his nostrils becoming a little more used to the smell and allowing him some relief. “You said most of the crew?”

“This guy died from acute exsanguination; he bled to death,” said Conrad, a hint of concern in his tone.

“You needed to cut him open to determine that?” 

“Ordinarily, no, but what’s interesting is the scanners couldn’t locate any wounds or injuries that would account for the blood loss… so I did a little exploring, he bled out internally… but there were no signs of trauma or damage to his organs, it’s like every tissue in his body just started bleeding uncontrollably… I’ve never seen anything like it.” Conrad couldn’t help but sound a little fascinated. To a physician, a medical mystery is like a drug: intoxicating.

“Any theories on how that might have happened?”

“My best theory was ruled out by the bio-filters when we beamed him aboard. The only way this happens in humans is through some sort of hemorrhagic fever, but I have checked the logs twice and found no trace of any pathogen or disease… for now, his death is a mystery.” 

“As soon as one of the survivors is awake, I want to know about it. Maybe they can provide some context that might shed some light. In the meantime, we’re going to tow the freighter to the nearest starbase and let Command try to reach out to the Azurak.” Alex instructed, the absence of information in this situation was deeply concerning him; he would be glad to hand the situation over to his superiors as soon as possible.

Conrad nodded in agreement and went back to closing the corpse.

Alex couldn’t leave the room quickly enough; the smell was overpowering, and although he was not normally affected by strong scents, the smell of death was something he had not experienced in so long that he found it difficult to adjust.

As he stepped out of the morgue and into the corridor, the wall of fresh air purged his nostrils and sinuses, and he breathed a sigh of relief, making a mental note to avoid visiting the morgue in the future.

Meanwhile – Aboard the Azuak Freighter

Several hours had passed since Lieutenant Commander Sovek and his team made their grisly discovery on the Azurak bridge. Sovek had been fixated on the logs of the Azurak freighter, particularly entries concerning the culture and history of the race. 

A download of the data was not going to take very long, but due to the damage the ship had sustained, additional staff were required to assist in bringing the freighter’s computer back to an operational status. 

“Alright, I think the main computer terminal should be coming back online any moment. You should be able to start the download as soon as it comes back up.” T’Lira said as she entered the bridge. To work more efficiently, she had restored life support to several key areas, so there was no longer any need for EVA suits; she hated them anyway, as she always felt her antennae had very little room to move inside the helmet.

Sovek initiated the download via his tricorder and then sat at the computer terminal. He had been spending his time reviewing the freighter’s logs via one of the Azurak’s PADD equivalents that he found in the captain’s office. “Thank you, Commander, this will be adequate.”

T’Lira expected a little more gratitude from the Vulcan, being that she had just spent the better part of two hours re-routing cables and trying to reverse engineer an unfamiliar power system. Her antennae curled in frustration, “You’re welcome,” she said with a hint of sarcasm.

As she waited for the Vulcan to finish his work, she took a moment to look around the bridge for herself. It was largely unremarkable apart from what appeared to be some sort of trophy cabinet contained within an alcove on the starboard wall. She approached casually and began to admire some of the trinkets that appeared to hold some significance for the Azurak crew. One object in particular, however, held her attention; an ornately carved statue, resembling a snake’s head, though unlike any snake she was familiar with. This one was almost grotesque in its appearance, carved out of a sort of obsidian-like material.

The ornament would have held a place of significance in the alcove had it not fallen to the floor at some point during the attack; it was the only one out of place.

Almost instinctively, she picked up the ornament, noticing it felt lighter than she had anticipated and went to place it back on its shelf, where it likely belonged. As she held the statue, she couldn’t help but stare at it. She had no reason to, but for some reason, she felt a sort of connection to the object. 

She felt entranced for a moment, as if the room and everything around her began to fade out of existence.

“Fascinating,” 

Sovek exclaimed suddenly, having avoided T’Lira’s attention when entering the alcove; his sudden appearance startled her.

“Could you not do that!” she insisted, clearly frustrated by the vulcan creeping about behind her.

“My apologies, I was simply coming to inform you that the download has been completed.” The Vulcan explained. 

“That… was fast,” she said, a little confused.

Sovek raised an eyebrow, “The download took exactly 10.56 minutes to complete. I’m curious, by what standard are you comparing the speed of the download process?”

T’Lira felt a little disoriented. She was almost certain she hadn’t zoned out for 10 minutes, but she also knew that she hadn’t been sleeping well the past few days. “Never mind,” she said, dismissing her confusion as simple fatigue, “What was so fascinating anyway?”

“The object you are holding, I have seen references to it in the ship’s database, and I believe it holds cultural significance to the Azurak crew,” Sovek replied, almost geared to recite the database entry.

“I found it on the floor, looks like some sort of trophy to me,” said T’Lira, gazing upon the statue again. She found it held her attention longer than usual. She couldn’t help but get fixated on the imagery it depicted; it began to seem so lifelike that she could almost imagine it moving.

“Lieutenant Commander!”

Once again, she was startled. “Sorry, what?” she said again, confused.

“I was explaining the significance of the Hej’ogt… the object in your hand, from what I was able to research in the ship’s computer, you appeared to stop responding to verbal inquiries for an extended period of time,” Sovek explained, removing his tricorder from its pouch and proceeding to scan the object.

“I.. I’m sorry I didn’t hear you.” T’Lira responded, appearing more and more confused by the second.

Sovek took the statue from her grasp and placed it down on the floor before beginning his scans, “Curious, for a moment, I was detecting a low-level energy signature emanating from the Hej’ogt. However, I am no longer able to detect it.” Sovek turned his tricorder onto T’Lira, “I am also detecting traces of the same energy signature in your proximity, Commander, though it is dissipating.”

T’Lira rubbed her face for a moment. She felt like she had just woken up in the middle of the night and was only just regaining her orientation. “Energy signature? Could it be dangerous?” She asked.

“I do not believe so. I experienced no adverse effects from handling it, and I am no longer detecting an energy signature.” Sovek replied as he concluded his scans.

T’Lira’s senses began to return, and she began to feel very uneasy around the statue. She couldn’t quite explain it to herself. It wasn’t the physical effect it appeared to have on her or anything she could detect with her antennae; it was a more abstract and intangible feeling that almost triggered some anxiety.

“Whatever it was, it’s gone now. If the download is complete, we should get back to the ship!” She forcibly expressed her gut feeling, telling her she needed to distance herself from the statue. 

“You may not have heard me, Commander. This statue is the Hej’ogt, it holds a great deal of cultural significance to the Azurak. To them, it is regarded as a symbol of good fortune in their culture.” 

“So?” T’Lira responded, missing the point the Vulcan was trying to make.

“Azurak ships do not embark on a voyage without a Hej’ogt, a highly illogical custom; however, we do have two injured Azurak aboard Fairfax. As I understand it, they may see it as an insult to be transported by starship without the Hej’ogt being on board.”

T’Lira didn’t like what the Vulcan was suggesting. The more she thought about the statue, the more her instincts told her it wasn’t a good idea to be around it. That feeling was growing, but it was something more, something deeper, something malevolent.

“You said you detected an energy signature? I can’t be sure that thing is safe to bring on board the ship, or how it might interact with the warp drive or any number of systems”

“My readings indicate it is currently inert, and your argument only supports a counterargument for its further study. Besides, the Azurak freely carry the Hej’ogt aboard their ship with no adverse effect; logic would suggest that storing the object aboard Fairfax would be equally…uneventful,” Sovek defended. He was clearly curious about the object for its scientific value and as a chance to learn more about the Azurak culture.

T’Lira still didn’t like the idea; in fact, she had a bubbling feeling of dread for the notion. “We beam it directly to the science lab, behind a level 10 forcefield, and you’re responsible for monitoring it!” she insisted, failing to see a compelling argument to challenge the Vulcan.

Sovek raised an eyebrow, “Unecesceserily precautious, but agreed,” he stated as he tapped his com-badge

‘Sovek to Fairfax, two crew and one item to beam directly to science lab two, standby for co-ordinates.”