A Special Assignment

Posted on Sat Nov 11th, 2023 @ 8:11am by Commander Naois Mercy MD & Lieutenant Chexor Vonn

2,229 words; about a 11 minute read

Mission: Mission 1: To Catch a Thief
Location: Deck 9 - Lieutenant Vonn's Quarters
Timeline: MD2 - 0800 Hours

Delon read and re-read the odd 'summons' several times. Other than "report to Lieutenant Vonn's quarters at 0800" there was no other information in the message on his PADD. The young Romulan shrugged and stuffed the small device away, then proceeded to get dressed.

"Why so early," he muttered under his breath, not for the first time yearning for that drink his father always nurtured in the morning. But he'd been forbidden to replicate it 'until he'd be of age ' though his father hadn't deemed it necessary to explain when that would be. He walked up to the designated quarters and pressed the chime.

"Come in," called a muffled voice from beyond the door.

Straightening, the ten year old stepped inside. "I'm sorry sir...I seem to have an appointment with you? The message didn't say why..." Delon glanced around the room, which was distinctly different from his own home.

"Ah, yes!" Chex exclaimed from his table. He quickly stuffed the last of his breakfast (a rotten egg) into his mouth and rose to greet his guest. "I did ask for you. I've been told you are the responsible one! Please, make yourself at home. Would you like anything to eat or drink?" he asked the young child as he directed him to the living area.

"Responsible one sir?" Delon managed before shaking his head. "No sir, I've already eaten." He wrinkled his nose, what was that smell? "Why was I summoned sir?"

"That's a very good question, Delon," the Bolian answered at first. He took a seat at the small side table on the opposite side of the room. At the centre of said table sat a very old-looking astrolabe; a handheld astronomical instrument from an alien culture that Chex had encountered years ago. It was spherical, with numerous rings around it. The device was made of bronze and stone. "I will answer your question, with another," he told the boy. "Do you like animals?" Chex asked him.

Delon eyed the contraption somewhat suspiciously, but nodded anyway. "Sure, depends on the animal though. Dad won't let us have pets, but I do like cats. Rev likes dogs though and Lau's a typical girl, loving horses. Why?"

Straight to the heart of the matter, Chex mused although realistically he wasn't surprised in the least. Despite his mixed upbringing, it was very... Romulan... of the boy. The Lieutenant straightened his posture and spoke aknew, "Well, as you are undoubtedly aware, life as a Starfleet Officer is a dangerous one. Although I'd like to hope that the worst to come our way is long behind us." Chex gave Delon a wary smile. "Even so, as we tread into dangerous waters once more, I need to make certain that all of my affairs are in order should... well... you know... if something were to happen to me. You see, I have a pet and he would need to be cared for if I... died." Was this entire conversation too 'adult' for Delon? Chex didn't suspect that would be the case but one could never be certain until the matter was brought up.

"What kind of pet?" Delon asked, unwilling to acknowledge the possibility of death. It was too close to home. "You don't strike me as a dog or cat person sir..."

"Very observant," the Bolian nodded appreciatively. "No, my pet is a little more sophisticated than the ones most people keep at home. He very much has a mind of his own and is prone to unwarranted misbehaviour." Chex sighed softly, feigning disappointed. "Alas, I couldn't ask for a better companion. My pet is a seasloth, native to my homeworld. I would expect you've heard whispers of his name. I've only recently regained some manner of control over him. He truly is a tyrant in disguise."

"I've never seen a seasloth," Delon admitted, eyeing the cage in curiosity, "yeah I've heard the gossip. I watch people." He did like to get into places and just observe people, much to his father's despair. "Can I see him?"

As if on cue, one of the chairs at the dinner table slowly spun around, revealing the animal in question. The chair came to a stop when Gary was facing them. He was wearing his pyjamas and eating some fruit for breakfast. There were bits of the yellow fleshy food around his lips but that didn't seem to bother the seasloth in the least. He casually sat where he was and munched away without a care in the world.

"Well, there he is," Vonn motioned with his hand before muttering, "...always making an entrance."

The child's face lit up. "He's gorgeous!" He exclaimed , curiously leaning towards the creature. "What is his name? Can I touch him? Give him another snack?" One thing he did notice. "Why does he wear clothes?"

"Why not?" the Bolian returned with a shrug. "There are many people who dress up their animals. In this instance, however, it's completely Gary's choice. He has an entire wardrobe! He's something of a fashionista." Chex leaned back in his chair and gently stroked his chin, somewhat amused at the notion. "Personally, I think he does it so that he feels included. It can get lonely aboard a starship and a clothed seasloth is an excellent starting piece for a conversation."

"He sure is," the Romulan agreed, reaching out towards the blue creature. "Can I touch him? Can I hold him? He does like to be held right, like many pets?"

"Yes, and..." Before Chex could finish his sentence, the seasloth had ventured from his seat to their side (much faster than anyone would have expected), and had scooped up Delon into his lanky arms. "...no. As I mentioned, he has a mind of his own," the Lieutenant finally completed.

"Whoaaa," Delon exclaimed as the blue creature lifted him clear from the floor. "You can put me down now please," he added even though his grin went from ear to ear. "This is a first... are you sure he's a pet and not some intelligent species?" The boy reached to pet Gary's fur, marveling at the texture. "Oh wow he's softer than he looks!"

Instead of putting Delon down as he asked, Gary carried the boy into the bedroom, depositing him just shy of the doorway. The sloth then moved to a box and began to look through it, slinging various strange articles of clothing over his left shoulder and then over his right.

"People often mistake his actions for intellect," the Bolian answered from the main living area. "I assure you that he's a pet; one with too much time on his hands it seems."

Delon watched the creature with interest, ducking as clothes flew right past him. "How old is he?" He turned his head to look back at the Bolian, "how long have you had him? He does seem intelligent to me... though I'm not sure what he's doing now..."

"He's twenty-three and I've had him nearly all of that time," Chex answered the boy. He leaned against the door frame and watched the two from there. "I moved to Earth several years before joining Starfleet and I guess that after a time I started to miss my real home. At the time, having a seasloth seemed like a good idea..."

At this point, Gary was teetering over the side of the box. His feet were dangling in the air. The front part of his body tilted down.. and down.. and.. Gary's legs flailed frantically as he tried desperately to regain his balance. Alas it was too late. Thump! The sloth tumbled forward into the container.

"Whoa!" Delon called out, sprinting forward to catch the sloth, grabbing his legs to pull him out. "You all right there buddy?" He patted the creature down, carefully. "You're not hurt are you? What were you trying to get at, maybe I can help?"

Gary opened his mouth as if to answer and then stopped just as he was about to mutter something. He gently licked his lips and then placed some disguise glasses (with fuzzy eyebrows and a big long nose) gently onto Delon's face.

Chex chuckled from the doorway at the sight. "Oh, he likes you. He wants to make you his accomplice in all of his shenanigans."

The boy laughed as he adjusted the glasses then rummaged around in the box and retrieved a fedora. Examining it for a second, he then placed it on Gary's head. "Challenge accepted!" He grinned. "Oh the fun we could have!"

"Indeed. Within reason, I hope. For your sake. Gary's a bad influence on others," the Lieutenant said to the boy. He then sought to finally cut to the heart of the matter regarding Delon's summons to his quarters. "In any case, as it has no doubt been explained to you by Commander Mercy, risk is a big part of being a Starfleet Officer. If anything were to ever happen to me, I'd like someone to take care of him. You two seem like a good fit."

"Commander Mercy is my father and I know the risk." The boy's face sobered considerably. "We nearly lost him a few times and there is no other family. Dad has no siblings, but Lieutenant Naidoo is our godmother. I'll need dad's permission but I'll take care of Gary no matter what. Is there any other family I should take him to if dad says no?"

Chex hadn't even considered his family regarding Gary's care. It was a difficult subject for him to even think about. Matters with his family were... complicated. "Perhaps my brother Hagon," he started to answer. "He, too, is a Starfleet officer although I'm not certain where his current posting is. Failing that, I suppose that Gary could be returned to his own kind in the seas of Bole. I don't know how he would cope with being away from people, though. He's very social, as you have seen."

Delon glanced back at Gary. "Dad could find out if necessary," he promised. "Perhaps next shoreleave you could take Gary to those seas? To show him his home?"

"It has been some time since we've returned... to that place," the Lieutenant considered. In truth, he had no real desire to go back to Bolarus. There were too many bad memories for him to face. "Perhaps one day..." he conceded to the boy. Or never. Whichever came first.

He stepped into the room and leaned down towards Gary. "It's time to brush your teeth," Chex told him. There was a moment's hesitation, but the sloth chose to follow his master's instructions. He returned the fedora back into the box and waddled his way out of the room. Chexor nodded, impressed by Gary's rare showing of obedience. Meeting Delon had put him in a good mood.

With the sloth out of the picture for the moment, Chex turned his attention to the Romulan. "You've seen the challenge that awaits you. Should you receive your father's blessing, I firmly believe that Gary would be in good hands."

"He's a bit like a little brother, I think?" Delon mused, "He does seem to understand what you tell him, doesn't he?" The boy cast sparkling eyes on the man. "I'm sure I can convince dad, but you might need to talk to him too." He turned his eyes towards the bedroom. "Should I tell him goodnight? He sleeps during the day right? I mean, Earth sloths are nocturnal, is Gary too?"

"Oh no. To be fair, he sleeps whenever he's tired. Which... can be problematic at times," the Bolian answered. "He has grown accustomed to my routine and as result, prefers to be awake when I am." Chex led Delon out of the bedroom and back into the main living area. "After he's done brushing his teeth and has gotten himself dressed, he'll be off to school with all of you. I don't expect him to learn anything... but," and he shrugged his shoulders. "... you never know. Perhaps one or two of his brain cells will fire off."

The boy's eyes lit up and he turned towards the bathroom. "Yo Gary!" He called out, "want to come to school with me today?" Delon turned back to the man. "We can go together, I'm sure he can..help out?"

In response, the seasloth poked the top half of his body out from the bathroom. He had a wide smile, from ear to ear. His mouth was covered in white frothy toothpaste. He held out a lanky arm and gave Delon a thumbs up for his suggestion.

"Consider it a trial run. See how things go!" the Bolian exclaimed with some optimism. In truth, he hadn't seen Gary this happy for quite some time. It would be good for him to finally have a friend.

The Romulan child beamed at them both. "Well hurry up then Gary, I got to go home first to pick up my stuff. I'll come back for you alright?" He smiled at the Bolian. "What time should I come back? School starts in about half an hour and I do have to get home first to get my homework."

"He'll be ready by the time you return," Chexor advised the boy. "I'll make certain of it."

"I'll be back in twenty then," Delon promised, "see you soon Gary!"

 

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