New Doctor

Posted on Mon Mar 25th, 2024 @ 10:28pm by Lieutenant Himari Kai, MD & Lieutenant Commander Hamish Brott

1,273 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Spiders of Sarastus VII
Location: Shuttle Bay
Timeline: 12 Hours after Hello, Goodbye

ON:

Himari Kai stood by the view port as the shuttle approached the small bay. It was delivering supplies and Kai to her new home. There was a wave of nervous excitement and also a bit of fear. She was too late to see Tanaka but she was told that the ... enthusiastic commander would be there to greet her.

Enthusiasm had levels, and Brott was not at his average level of enthusiasm. Goodbyes were tough on him, especially with people he was starting to feel a friendship with. He did his best to not hold it against his former Station Physician, and certainly not towards this new one, but abandonment issues were deep wounds that left scars on Brott.

He watched as the shuttle settled and the hatch opened up. Naturally, a little tune had popped into his head and he began humming it as the new doctor exited the shuttle. He had failed to register where the tune was coming from until she looked at him and he looked at her. "Sorry!" He exclaimed and laughed up roaringly. "That dang Wagner gets me every time" he explained.

Richard Wagner, composer of many greats including what Brott was humming, The Bridal Chorus used on Earth in many traditional Human weddings.

"I'm more partial to Johann Pachelbel...but I am a hopeless romantic, in some ways." She scrunched up her face. "I think I am, at least." She shook her head. "Blue and a singer. Tanaka mentioned you, you must be Fellow H club member Brott."

"Hopelessly romantic myself though some days I feel more like helplessly describes it best," he said with a deep tummy chuckle. "I've just been holding my breath for my next prince to come along that's why I'm so blue, but I'm just an old spinster at this point."

"Ah..well then I have something that will help us both in our spinsterhood." She walked back to the shuttle and pulled out a pet carrier. "Here is our cat...we can take turns being crazy cat ladies."

Brott cooed at the carrier. "Katsumi did not say anything about you having a cat," the Bolian said already smitten with the feline. "It has been a good few years since we had an animal aboard the station, but this place is practically a giant cat tower."

She smiled. "Matilda will love it. She is an interesting cat. " She opened the carrier and like the Cheetah she looked like the little Bengal cat jumped out and into Brott's arms. She looked up at him with her green eyes. "She likes you," Kai said.

The large Bolian nestled the cat in his arms, nuzzling his head against the feline's face. "The feeling is mutual, very much so." He was happy that there would now be a cat aboard the station though unsure how the others would take it. "Katsumi has briefed you about the station?"

"She has a little. She mostly gripped about the roommate situation but I have no such issue. Trills are social creatures to a point."

He chuckled at what Katsumi had disclosed. "Communal living isn't for everyone. It was certainly not her thing. We each do our part and assist one another with the day to day operations of the station."

"I like the frontier aspect. And as crowded as she found it I find the solitary within a crowd easy.

"And your views on Ferengi?" He asked with a chuckle and the cat licked him. "We see them routinely. When the Federation is slow at getting us supplies, I sometimes have to reach out to my Ferengi contacts."

"I know all the rules of acquisition by heart... and how to twist them, my last host could Hussle a Ferengi out of his latinum and leave his lobes utterly destroyed. I'm not proud of it...she was."

"I would have liked her," Brott said with fondness. "She's part of you. I suspect some of her will surface in your actions every now and then." He thought of his dealing with the Ferengi. "This station was actually constructed because of the Ferengi. I'm just glad relations have improved over the years."

Her brow creased at his comment about the host popping up. That was the whole reason she was here to keep them from popping up. "Yes well I assume they wish us to be eternally grateful and so we play the part."

"A symbiotic relationship," he replied and the irony was not lost on him that he was speaking to a joined Trill. "The Ferengi rely on business and their primary trading route runs straight through the ionite nebulae with their storms and navigational interferences. Our station assists ships in successfully navigating the region."

"And we patch them up when they try to fight over latinum. I get it. Symbiotic and parasitic at the same time. Yet necessary." She sighed. "The story of my life."

Brott nodded, that was a way of looking at it. A valid one. "Fortunately, unless they are completely greed driven, the Ferengi will barter their way out of a fight."

"Ohhhh only with some things. Try insulting a Ferengi's latinum box." She rubbed her shoulder. "A mistake I..." She shook her head. "The previous host made."

"I try to never insult a Ferengi," he replied confidently. He had years of experience dealing with them directly. "When it can be avoided at least."

She smiled a little. "Well then. I guess I better get the cat settled and then I can take a look around my sickbay. I hear that the Sakura lounge is a beauty to behold."

Brott let the cat down gently onto the floor. "The lounge? I wouldn't get overly excited" he warned the Doctor. "About that or any room on this station. The lounge is just a central location with two sofas, a round table, and a replicator. I've done my best with what we had."

'I thought the table was a, and I quote 'Weird Triangle'." She laughed. She shrugged. "A room is what you make it. I'll be spending most of my time in sickbay but I will pop in and out for meals. " She followed Brott. "So tell me what you need me to know about what's going on. I know the previous CMO's take but still I'd rather hear it from the CO."

"Our science officer and security officer just returned back from a Ferengi planet. They seem to be in decent health, but if you wouldn't mind monitoring them?" Brott smiled. "Those backwater Ferengi worlds are known for some nasty bacterial infections" he added.

He thought some more. "Overall, not too much to catch you up on. We're not expecting any guests or visitors for a while except for cargo freighter that will be dropping off supplies..." Brott grabbed a PaDD. "Yes, just them. They should be arriving in about thirteen hours."

She gave a nod. "Sounds like a plan. I will go drop my bags off in the bunk and then I'll move over to sickbay to ensure all is well and to get familiar with Tanaka's....organization." She grinned. "I may re-organize."

"It's a small space, but it is your space" Brott replied cheerfully. "You do with it what you want. Make it feel like your own because that's what it is."

She smiled. “I’ll tell you what commander. Tanaka could be quite…well there is no word for it but she was right. This is the place I need to be now.”

She said her goodbyes again and headed off to tend to the cat and get to know her sickbay.

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