A New Friend

Posted on 18 Mar 2019 @ 1:47pm by Ensign Trixia Sh'rhovek

Mission: Gremlins
Location: Deep Space 13
Timeline: Before we leave

ON:

Everything was coming together nicely.  As far as Trixia could tell, the ship was pretty much ready to go.  They just needed to get crew and supplies onboard.  She had spent the last few weeks getting to know the ship quite well.  Long-term cruise didn't typically break things, especially that soon out of spacedock.  The Miller had performed flawlessly.  She had basically nothing to do except to learn.  While she relished learning the foibles of ship systems, Trixia needed a break as much as anyone.  As soon as she was able to tear herself away she donned civilian clothes; light colored slacks and an Andorian-style blouse that complimented her blue skin.  She then went to explore the starbase.

There were layers between the Miller and Babel.  She ducked through the docking section pretty quickly, not really noticing much of the goings on.  The raw mechanics that linked the ship's systems to the base would have distracted her, she knew, so she kept her eyes forward.  Passing through the last airlock deposited her into a labyrinth of corridors and offices.  Normally it would be easy to get lost in there, but signs and lights pointed her in the right direction.  It seemed the station administrators wanted visitors to find the district.

Then it was a series of storage and cargo bays labelled for a variety of shops and stalls.  Pushing through the last door, a wave of light and sound assaulted Trixia's senses.  Crowds of people milled about the district, and colors abounded on signs and shops.  It was all too much to take in at once.  She dropped down the small set of steps to the bustling floor and kind of melted into the crowd.

It was easier to take in each shop at once.  Read the sign, examine the wares.  Holograms abounded.  Either as an advertising gimmick, or as more practical uses.  Some shops, including the seller, seemed completely holographic.  She wandered around for some time, just absorbing the environment and browsing.  Knowing what was available would be useful down the line, she was sure.

Trixia purchased a few Andorian trinkets to decorate her quarters and then stopped by one of the food kiosks for a light snack.  Apparently someone had the bright idea to deep fry Gagh and put it on a stick.  Klingons would be horrified, but it wasn't completely terrible.  She suspected some liberal application of seasonings was used.

"Ladies, gentlemen, and sundry.  Hoo-mans, Vulcans, and otherwise.  Come see the latest in pet technology."

Trixia's antennae twitched at the sound.  She turned and shouldered her way through the growing crowd to see what the fuss was about.  Standing on a small table to bring himself to an immense 2 ½ meters above the decking, a Ferengi waved his hands animatedly before an array of cage stacks.  She tried to see what was within, but due to the gesticulating Ferengi and some poor angles, she just couldn't see much of anything.

"Pets are so much work, am I right?  You have to feed them, clean up after them, and ensure they don't breed too much.  These concerns expand exponentially when you consider certain pets."

Trixia had no idea where he was going.  Sure, there were a number of Andorian pets she could think of that were more difficult than the average Felis Catus.  Then there were things like Targs, or Tarkassian razorbeasts.

"Fresh off of the latest shipment from Sabor Pet Industries is the modern solution for the discerning pet owner."  He reached behind him and after a moment brought it forward again, holding a small fuzzball.

Trixia furrowed her brow in curiosity until she recognized it.  "A tribble!"  The crowd came to the same conclusion.  Grumbles of surprise and alarm rolled through the throng, and it began to thin.

"But wait, I haven't told you the best part! These aren't just tribbles, but TribbleMatics."

"Tribble-whatnow?" Trixia couldn't help but ask.

The Ferengi turned a smarmy smile her way.  "TribbleMatics, young lady.  Mechanical animals that do not require food, do not require waste disposal, and most importantly, do not breed.  They are otherwise identical to their wild, uncontrollable cousins."

Trixia couldn't help but be intrigued.  "May I?" she asked, reaching out.

The seller, seeing an opportunity, hopped down from his makeshift dais and presented the TribbleMatic to Trixia.  She was surprised to notice he was nearly a foot shorter than she was.  She reached out and pet it, surprised by how soft and organic it felt.  Because she knew to look for it, she could tell there were inorganic components in there as well.

"I can see you are a discriminating connoisseur," the Ferengi flattered, "You may have your choice of color and coat for the ultra low price of ten strips of gold-pressed latinum."

Trixia wasn't a great negotiator, but she was able to talk the Ferengi down to eight strips and seventy-five slips.  She glanced down at the small cage in her hand that enclosed the small, furry shape.  She chose a medium-length haired TribbleMatic colored brown with splotches of black.  She was quite interested in seeing how it worked inside.

"I think I'll call you… Axel."

As soon as she got to her quarters aboard the Miller, Trixia broke out a set of small tools which she arranged neatly on a table where the TribbleMatic rocked gently.  She sat town and took the object into her hands, feeling the soft fur and gentle mechanical purr.  "Sorry, Axel.  I'll have you back together lickety split, I promise."

She then felt around for the switch the Ferengi told her about and tripped it. The TribbleMatic fell still and inert.  She then selected a small blade akin to a scalpel and carefully skinned it.

With the skin off, Trixia noted the oblate spheroid shape of he thing, with protrusions here and there to facilitate movement.  There were no obvious cracks to get deeper inside, and she was worried that ill-informed cutting would render the TribbleMatic dead.  She made a mental note to scan it in Engineering at some point.

There was a tiny bank of DIP switches on one side that piqued her interest.  She fiddled with them a moment, wondering what they did.  She shrugged, made sure the switches were back to the original configuration, and then began to wrap the skin back around the TribbleMatic.  She applied a laser suture to reseal it and then switched it back on.

"There you go, Axel," she said to the gently cooing TribbleMatic.  "Told you I'd have you good as new."

OFF:

Ensign Trixia Sh'rhovek
Operations Officer
USS Mark Miller