The Mysterious Impossible Pregnancy

Fred shook her head. "No, you don't understand, Doctor. It's not that there have been so many - it's that there haven't been any!"

McCoy looked non-plussed. "Come again?"

Fred searched Uhura's memories again, just to make sure. "Doctor, I haven't had any, ah, relations in the past six weeks!"

"Well, when was the last time?"

"The last time was, uh -" Fred felt vaguely uncomfortable discussing the exploits of another in mixed company - but after all, McCoy was a physician, and as far as he was concerned, they were her exploits. "It was over eight months ago, when we had shoreleave on Starbase 11."

McCoy looked thoughtful for a minute. "Well, I'm not questioning your memory or your honesty, Uhura, but your fetus is no more than six weeks old."

Fred shrugged. "I'm as much at a loss as you are," she said truthfully.

McCoy stood there a moment or two, considering what to do. Finally, he said, "Under the circumstances, I think we need to tun a few more tests."

Finally, McCoy re-entered the room, looking grim, accompanied by Captain Kirk and the ship's First Officer, Mr. Spock.

"Uhura," Kirk said with a comforting smile, "How are you feeling?"

Fred sat up on the edge of the bed. "A bit... lost, sir," she replied. Only you don't know just how lost, Fred thought bitterly.

"The doctor has explained to us your current condition - and its apparent physical impossibilty." Spock added.

"That's right," McCoy nodded. "Without going into too much, uh, clinical detail," he said, looking a bit embarassed himself, "It've determined that the apparent age of the fetus does not at all correspond the time the Lieutenant was last, um, active. Bluntly put, it's impossible for this baby to have been conceived!"

"And yet," Spock added calmly, "It has been."

"But how, Doctor?" Fred asked. "How in the world can this have possibly happened?!"

"I don't know," McCoy said, but we..."

"Excuse me, Doctor?" Nurse Christine Chapel entered, clutching a PADD and looking a bit pale. "I - I thought you'd want to see this."

McCoy took the PADD and read it. As he did, hs grim expression hardened into one of horror.

"Bones? What is it?"

McCoy looked at them. "It seems the impossibility of this pregnancy is the least of our worries:"

1. "We've had 12 other female crew members report to sickbay with various symptoms - and all of them are six weeks pregnant!"