The Great Tribble Hunt - Part I

Posted on Mon Feb 18, 2019 @ 1:27am by Lieutenant Jason Haines & Lieutenant Alanna Wells

2,914 words; about a 15 minute read

Mission: Doors of Perception
Location: Promenade / Arboretum
Timeline: MD 6, 2000

[ON]

Jason waited outside of D'Rama, where he had told Alanna to meet him in a note. He was dressed in casual khaki pants and a blue long sleeve, no collar shirt. He thought meeting here would be a good start given the discussion that had been had around this meeting. He hoped she would appreciate the connection.

Alanna wore a sleeveless one-piece outfit in a soft, deep blue fabric. It had long pants, a high neck in the front and an open back. Since they'd be in the arboretum, she added a long-sleeved shirt in a matching fabric for protection from tree branches. She smiled when she saw Jason. "Hi." She nodded to the sign. "Nice name."

"Hi", Jason replied with a smile. "You look very nice tonight."

"Thank you, kind sir."

He looked at the sign and then back to her, "Well, the only other Klingon establishment I found was a bit too rough and tumble. I figured if we were going to possibly be accosted by tribbles, we might want to refer to the great works of Klingons. I thought given their distinct dislike for the little creatures, Klingons might have stories on fighting the furry menaces."

"Good idea. I hear tribbles can be pretty vicious when cornered."

"Now, my question for you", Jason said. "Do you read Klingon? My extent of the Klingon language is just enough to get my arms ripped off for insulting a Klingon's mother. Because if you don't read Klingon, I think we might want to skip this part of the evening."

"I only know a few words," she admitted. "And I much prefer your arms to remain intact. So, what do you suggest?"

"Well, we could spend the evening learning remedial Klingon", Jason answered. "Or, this is a bit risky I know, but we could brave the wilds of the arboretum with out their tactical knowledge of tribbles. I will try not to scream too much if we run into a pack of tribbles. No guarantees though."

"I think I'll take my chances with the tribbles."

"Well then", Jason replied. "Let's begin the great hunt."

It was a crowded walk on the promenade this night and it seemed like everyone was out tonight. Luckily the crowd thinned out as they got closer to the Arboretum.

"So far, no tribbles", Jason said. "I wonder if the tales of them were exaggerated or if they are lulling us into a false sense of security."

"We'll have to take our chances if we want to find out," Alanna said. "If they're in the arboretum, they'd be lurking in the deep, dark recesses."

"Well, let's bravely forge forward", he said.

He had taken time to learn more about what was in the arboretum and brought them to a nice clearing that could allow them to see the simulated stars easily.

"How is this?", he asked.

"This is a great spot." From the look of the sky, it would be a clear night for stargazing.

"Good", Jason replied. "Because it looks like someone left a blanket to sit on for us. I am surprised the grounds keeper didn't pick it up a third time. That woman is way too efficient."

He extended his hand to the blanket.

She grinned impishly at Jason. "A third time, huh? I'll have to have a word with her." She sat down and made herself comfortable.

"Please do", Jason replied sitting down. "It is a cardinal sin to go out stargazing without a blanket. And I have to admit, I was feeling a bit lazy and didn't feel like carrying it around the promenade, so I braved the tribbles and dropped it off earlier. I hope you can forgive me."

"For your foresight?" She shook her head. "It was an excellent idea. I'm glad no one thought to take your spot."

"Yeah, I would have had to sick the tribbles on them and teach them a lesson", Jason answered. He lay back to get a better view and then said, "So, what's your sign?"

"My sign?" She had to think about that for a minute. "Oh, yes. Terran Astrological sign. I'm...um...Sagittarius. You?" She slipped off her over shirt so it wouldn't bunch up under her and lay down beside Jason.

"Sagittarius, the centaur or archer, interesting", Jason replied. "I am a cancer, the crab. Can't see the constellation here though. You know, the one thing that every race definitely has in common is the fascination with the stars. Mythologies, politics, religion, physiology, all different. The stars, pretty much the same. Astronomy was one of my favorite classes in Academy."

"The study of mathematics and astronomy seem to be a constant, even back to the earliest records. Did you know that ancient earth cultures like the Inca, Maya and Egyptian cultures used astronomy and math to build their pyramids? The ancient Endorians built elaborate mazes that were mathematically perfect." She turned her head to grin at him. "Don't get me started on the mythology."

"I remember something like that now that you mention it", Jason said. "I did alright in history, but still need to look stuff up when I want to really recall. And I figure you would know a fair amount of mythology given your choice of sciences. So what is the most interesting myth you've learned about."

"That's tough. There are so many to choose from..." She paused, considering. "I think it would have to be the giant three-headed toad of Lentari Prime. The ancient people believed the toad jumped from planet to planet. Wherever it defecated, life began and eventually evolved into humanoids."

"Wow", Jason replied with a chuckle. "There are so many jokes that could be made here. I think I should probably leave them unsaid. I might offend an ancient three-headed toad. I hear they can be rather vengeful."

"Almost as vengeful as rabid tribbles."

"Nah", Jason said. "Rabid tribbles will just eat you. Vengeful toads will make a mess and then torment you. I hear an entire civilization cropped up because of an annoyed toad, but there was a lot of clean up afterwards. I'll take my chances with the tribbles."

She chuckled in appreciation of his humor. "Good point. So far no tribbles, toads, crabs or satyrs."

"So, do you have any constellation that you enjoy looking at more than others?" he asked. "I am an Orion fan myself."

He picked a piece of grass absent-mindedly, turning on his side to look at her.

"Orion is beautiful. So is Eta Carinae." She looked at him and smiled. "I'm partial to nebulae."

"Ooh, a nebulae lady", Jason replied. "Cloudy and mysterious, but stunning to look at. Do you have a favorite one, aesthetically speaking."

Her eyes met his for a long moment. He was quite something. "Orion, Eta Carinae, the one Terrans call the Eagle nebula. The Three Sisters, closer to my home." She smiled softly. "There are many things in the universe that are awe-inspiring. I stop looking at the science and just appreciate the beauty."

"I can appreciate beauty", he said, touching her hand. He paused and felt very nervous and doubtful. He liked her, but he could already easily see his job and the various orders he was receiving, messing something up.

His touch made her heart beat faster. "I appreciate you," she said, gently caressing his hand with her fingers.

"Well, I am not sure if I qualify as beautiful", he said taking in a sharp breath of air. "Alanna, I like you. You are smart, fun, pretty so I need to say something because I don't want you to get hurt if we think about moving beyond stuff like this."

He sighed, "You see, when I got this promotion, I thanked my last Captain. He said, 'Don't thank me yet'. The thing you need to know about Captain Phralan, was that he never joked, so he was being straight up with me. Then on the trip here, all the reports indicated that there was a lot going on, but I really couldn't see everything. Now that I am here, well, let's just say my job is a lot more complicated than I thought it was going to be. I might be asked to do things that are not truly conducive to personal relationships of any sort. I just wanted to let you to be able to decide if you wanted to take a risk like this."

She appreciated his candor. "Valid points. And they deserve an honest reply." She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I'm attracted to you, as you no doubt know. You are handsome and charming, but more than that, I like who you are as a person. My last relationship was several years ago. I'm a scientist, and on occasion I've spent months on small planets working on archaeological sites or studying ancient cultures. And I can spend days locked in a lab doing research. That's not always conducive to relationships, either. But I've never regretted following my heart. I don't know where this will lead, but I want to pursue it. With you. As long as you're honest with me--or as honest as you can be--I can accept that your job will complicate things." She looked at him for a long moment. "I think it'll be worth the risk."

Jason smiled and said, "I hope so. I wouldn't want to be re-assigned anywhere and have you saying, 'Thank heavens, I thought he would never leave'."

She shook her head and smiled. "I cannot see myself thinking that. I want to make the most of this opportunity and see where it leads us." She was watching his face intently. "I want..." There was so much she was afraid to say to him, afraid of being rejected. She had no idea where a relationship with Jason would end, but she wanted to start the journey.

"Well, if you did think it", Jason replied. "You wouldn't be the only one. When I was young, I used to be a bit of a handful. Except for my god-parents, my parents had few people who were willing to baby-sit. And one woman did indeed say, 'I thought he would never leave.'"

He chuckled a bit and then squeezed her hand gently.

"Just let me know if things get to be a bit too weird for you", Jason said. "I will understand."

She squeezed his hand and smiled. "I could say the same thing. Too many people think scientists are weird. And this place seems to be a magnet for weird." She smiled. "I'm okay with weirdness if you are."

"I already knew you were weird", Jason replied with a laugh. "You agreed to meet me in the dark after I was talking about killer tribbles. If that isn't weird, I don't know what is."

"I'm drawn to weird things. Its an occupational hazard."

Jason laughed a little and then said as he looked up at the stars holding her hand, "So, I've found out a lot about the current you, but I don't know much about the past you. Where are you from? How big is your family? Where do they live? And anything else you want to tell me."

"I'm from a small colony in the Catalan system. Both my parents are teachers. I spent a lot of time in the woods playing and learning about the trees and vegetation." She liked the way the touch of his hand sent warmth coursing through her bloodstream. "I have a younger sister who is more interested in books. We both read a lot, but I wanted to see the places I read about." She gave him a self-deprecating smile. "I've always been curious. I was in my early teens when we moved to earth. That's where I fell in love with history and archaeology. My parents took my sister and I to visit historical sites on earth." She turned on her side so she could get a better look at his face. "What about you?"

A 'hmm', escaped Jason and he said, "Well, I am not so sure that my story is as light hearted as yours. I was born on earth, in Ireland as that is where my mother is from. She was a doctor in Starfleet. My father was an intel black ops specialist in Starfleet. According to my god parents, both who are Starfleet officers, my god father is actually an assistant commandant of the Academy, my parents were like oil and water when they first met. Apparently my dad was a bit of lecherous dog who enjoyed drinking a bit too much, to paraphrase my mom. Any ways, as I told you the other day, my mom died when we were in an accident. My father retired from Starfleet to take care of me. We moved to Montana, but we travelled about the planet some. Seven years ago, my dad brought me to my god parents in San Francisco, told me there was something really important that he needed to check out, and I haven't seen him since. I went into Starfleet, did well, 2nd in my class, and well pretty much, here I am."

Her eyes roamed over his face and then she caressed his cheek with her free hand. "You've had to overcome a lot in your life. I admire you for coming through it so well."

"I'm not sure if I've come through it well", Jason said. "but there are tons of individuals who have had it way worse than I have. See, cause I am having a nice evening, under simulated stars, which are under real stars, with a pretty lady. Not everyone gets to say that."

"Yes, we do have it pretty good, don't we?" She grinned and lay back, looking up at the stars. "You know, this is the first time I've had a good look at these stars."

"Me, too", Jason answered. "But, I've only been on the station for three days. What's your excuse?"

"I didn't have you to bring me here," she teased.

"Oh, so it is all my fault?", Jason said in a mock 'hurt' tone and slight snicker. "You know, I didn't have to come here for this sort of abuse. Why should I put up with this? I am sure the station has numerous places I can go to get abused on this level. What makes you think you should be at the top of the list?"

She chuckled. "I have nothing. What if I promise to make it up to you later?"

"Abuse and then you want an IOU?", Jason said. "I must be out of my mind, but ok. Fool me though and I might have to get the systems programmed to display the terminals you log into displayed in inverted Klingon."

She could no longer contain her laughter. "An inverted Klingon? At least it's not a rabid tribble. Either way, I promise I'll behave."

"I didn't say you had to behave", Jason replied with a laugh. "You just need to make it up to me.""

"I never said how I'd behave." She grinned impishly. "So, how do you think I should make it up to you?"

"I think you should do it without any influence from me", Jason replied with a smirk. "After all, if I influenced you, then it really wouldn't be making it up to me, just taking a directive. I want it to be more inspired than that."

"Challenge accepted." She gave him a wicked grin and turned to look back at the stars.

"You didn't think I was going to make it easy did you?" Jason remarked, putting his hands behind his head.

"One can always hope," she teased. She looked up at the stars and considered several possibilities.

"I said that to my god-father after being 2 seconds away from beating the kobayashi maru test and having my ship blow up", Jason said. "He said, 'Jason, anything easy leaves you wanting.' I am not sure I completely agree, but sometimes."

"I agree with you. Sometimes, you need to work at something to appreciate the value, but we need other things to be easy to give us balance. I like to think of it as sunlight in a storm."

"Yeah", Jason said. "I think I would really be a cranky individual if breakfast was hard to make. The best meal of the day if you ask me."

"I do appreciate a good breakfast. I think one of my favorite breakfasts is Navajo fry-bread cooked over an open fire. On second thoughts, I think there are too many breakfasts I enjoy to pick just one." She turned to Jason. "What's your favorite breakfast?"

"Ah, a nice ham and cheese omelet with a little bit of onion and green pepper", Jason replied. "a side of hash browns, and a couple of pieces of toast."

"No bacon? I love a good omelet, only mine are cheese, tomato and mushroom. With salsa on the side."

"I leave bacon for when I have pancakes or waffles", Jason replied and then scrunched his nose. "Salsa with an omelet? Weirdo."

"I refer back to our earlier conversation," she said, grinning.

A full moon began to rise, bathing the arboretum in silver. "Time for the tribbles to feed."

To Be Continued ...

[OFF]

Lieutenant(jg) Allana Wells
Chief Science Officer
Deep Space 5

Lieutenant(jg) Robert Haines
Chief Intelligence Officer
Deep Space 5

 

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