Object
Andronesian Encephalitis
A virulent, unseen encephalitic pathogen called Andronesian Encephalitis. It manifests through acute neuroinflammatory signs in patient Hennessey—fever, confusion, and alarms signaling contagious spread—yet remains microscopically unspecified in the sickbay. Dr. Pulaski names the disease aloud, alarms spike, and its diagnosis provokes Anya’s custodial fury and a violent seizure of the ward, converting medical risk into immediate physical danger.
2 appearances
Purpose
Acts as a contagious neurotropic disease causing encephalitic illness in an infected individual, creating an immediate infection risk that demands medical isolation, containment, and urgent ethical decision-making.
Significance
Functions as the catalytic threat that escalates the plot: it turns a routine diagnosis into an ethical and physical crisis, compels Anya to invoke a custodial mandate to destroy the patient, triggers her monstrous transformation, and forces Starfleet to assert quarantine protocol—thereby exposing cultural conflict and raising stakes.
Appearances in the Narrative
When this object appears and how it's used