SNIP

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Arriving at Laju and Nala location
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Natasha let out a deep breath as Mayvonne finished her tirade in the turbo about loyalty and what happened to those that turned their backs on people. “Laju,” Natasha said cutting off the duty nurse that was now tagging along with her. “What’s up.”

Natasha Knight.

Natasha’s eyes slipped from Laju to Nala who stepped up and clearly was not so thrilled by the Saracen’s newest security officer’s dedication to his duty.

” Oh Docter thank you so much that you are here. Lieutenant Eghimea has been completely unhelpful. I spent months doing all the research and getting all my paperwork together for the snow leopard cub and she is trying to keep him from boarding the ship” Nala said.

Her ears were pined against her head and her tail swished back and forth in a clearly agitated manner. Her stance showed she was agitated but something else. Nala was tired she had been up for way to long.
Ensign Nala

Natasha could not help but smile at the situation. Nala looked like she was about to kill Laju and Laju looked like she needed a drink. It felt more like a counseling situation than she normally came into. When people came to medical angry, they were either drunk and pissed off at something that happened on their shift to land them there. Rarely was no one hurt and angry around her? “Okay let me,” Nat started to say before Mayvonne immediately interrupted.

“Excuse me did you just say leopard ‘cause I know I did not hear we are down here for some damn cat and I sure as hell know there is not some damn leopard rollin’ around here.” Mayvonne raised an eyebrow at Nala as she started to survey the space. Mayvonne was not typically one for animals rolling about the halls which she told the cap’n and his wife each time they rolled that damn lizard into her sick bay.

“No no,” Natasha said waving her hand. “They don’t mean like a leopard as in raarrrr,” she hooked her hands into claws and let out a growl. “They mean leopard like I call Bruce a dinosaur,” Nat assured the woman next to her.

“Well that Kalani has got a rarrr,” Mayvonne imitated Natasha causing the CMO to wrinkle up her nose.

“Ralph is a fennec fox and about the size of a dachshund,” Natasha began to defend her friend.

“Fox.....Fox! It’s a damn rodent with long fur and do not,” she raised a finger warningly, “start with me about it being a mammal no ma’am don’t you start with me.” The sassy tones of Mayvonne immediately quashed the side conversation causing Natasha to look over at Laju.

Nala almost burst into a fit of giggels.

Watching Doctor Knight walk into the cargo bay, Eghimea felt a sense of dread that she was unaccustomed to. ‘Wonderful,’ she thought in despair as the Caitian jump the gun and started ranting on and on about all the work she had done for her new pet. ‘If it was that important, then why did you not research proper quarantine procedures,’ Eghimea’s cattiness got the better of her private thoughts. She reached up and pinched the bridge of her nose and tried to let the frustration go. ‘Why couldn’t it had just been some nurse or anyone else….anyone besides the Captain’s wife,’ she screamed in to the back of her mind.

Letting the breath, she just realized she had been holding, slip through her lips, she brought her eyes up to Doctor Knight. Her voice slightly strained due to the encounter and the sudden escalation, “Doctor Knight, as I had explained. All that is needed is a clearance for Ensign Winter’s pet,” Eghimea said trying to keep her voice calm and only after the fact realizing that she failed on the word pet. The word has slipped Eghimea’s lips more than hinting at the frustration and anger that had been slowly building during the course of the encounter. “If you could please facilitate such a clearance we can send the Ensign and her friend on their way,” she added, this time being more successful at keeping her voice calm and even.

• 2nd Lieutenant Laju Eghimea

“See pet,” Natasha looked at Mayvonne slightly smugly. “Not raaar but pehhhh tahhhh,” she emphasized the word.

“And you ain’t no damn vehhhhhhh tahhhhhh,” Mayvonne shot back without missing a bet. “Call Teller,” she immediately ordered.

Holding up her hand, Natasha looked at Laju. “Okay, Mayvonne is right. I normally don’t make housecalls for pets. We tend to let sciences do live animal stuff like that but since we are here we can take a look at .....what’s the kitty’s name?”

Natasha Knight. CMO

” I could have cleared him myself” Nala said shooting Eghimea a glare. At the question of the animals name nala smiled a bit sheepishly.

Eghimea felt her teeth grind with frustration once more. Speaking through them she countered, “No Ensign, you can’t clear him yourself.” Drawing in a long and frustrated breath she turned to the two medical officers.

‘However,’ Eghimea thought struggling to keep her temper at bay.

“I apologize, the documentation for the clearance referred to a medical screening. I assumed that meant through Medical. An official request for clearance has been submitted. I am sure that once the reviewing officer, who’s task it is to issue the clearance, receives the request, the person will be on their way. Again, I apologize for bothering you, Doctor Knight.”

“Pffft,” she waved her hand with a lip trill. “It was play vet or inspect Polly’s feet and no one wants to do the later,” Natasha said with a smile.

“Mmmmhmmm I know that is true,” Mayvonne agreed with Natasha in her sassy tone, bobbing her head and crossing her arms.

” I have not yet named him I was considering midnight given the late time of his arrival but I have yet to actually chose a name for him. Many Sol or Ryan.” She said with a smile.
Ensign nala

The tips of her lips slightly curled upward, “the animal in question is a two-month-old Panthera uncia.” She couldn’t explain why, but the actions of the nurse were breaking the tension. And for that reprieve, she was grateful. She turned to Mayvonne, “so yes, you are correct.” Her voice shifted to a more relaxed and calm voice as she continued to explain, “it is a carnivorous feline predator from a region of Earth called Southern Asia.”

She turned back to both Ensign Winters and Doctor Knight, “the animal is in quarantine,” she said motioning to the location of the section of the cargo bay secured behind a force field. “There were several other items and animals that came aboard from the same transport. They too will need to be scanned before they are allowed to proceed to their destination.” She turned back to the two women, “If this is a matter for the Science division, then I am confident that they will send someone once the request has been properly addressed on their end.”

Her eyes turned to Nala as the Bajorian made a visible effort to regain her calm and even tone. She spoke softly yet clearly, “we cannot allow personal feelings to blind us to proper procedures.”

• 2nd Lieutenant Laju Eghimea

DaVinci strode into the cargo bay with an exasperated look on his face. As the CIO as well as XO, he had been monitoring the communications.

Natasha turned her head hearing the pneumatic doors opening and half expecting Teller to stroll in. She did not put it past Mayvonne to buck the system and call Teller regardless of what Natasha had just said. Seeing the XO strolling in, Natasha took note of the pace of his strides. Ol’ Di Vo is on about something, she thought internally but waited to see if her hunch was correct.

Eghimea watched the XO strolling into the cargo bay and a wave of invisible relief washed over her, ‘finally some productive help,’ she thought. ‘Posture; check, facial expression; neutral,’ she thought running through her mental checklist as he approached the group. She would not disappoint her department or her boss during her first official meeting with the Commander.

It wasn’t like she needed to change anything overtly after all. Military decorum was her thing, and she wore it like a badge of honor, regardless of being on or off duty. As he began to speak, she let the last bit of frustration slip from her mind.

“Someone, please explain to me what the hell is going on!! All I’ve heard so far is another “pet” is coming on board? The Saracen is a battleship, not a damn Noah’s Ark. If we’re allowing more and more “pets” on board , I am sure as hell bring some of my horses aboard. Lt. Laju, as the security officer in charge of okaying all this incoming cargo, I want your imput first and foremost!!”

Colter (XO/CIO)

“Hold up,” Natasha raised her hand looking at DaVinci. “Did you just call my son a pet?” Looking at them one would not immediately notice the slightly annoyed expression and tone of her voice was a well-cheorgraphed sarcasm. If it had not been for Captain Fantastic and Captain Chaos on a drunken bender years ago, Bruce would not be sporting the coveted name of Dante’s brother as her husband’s firstborn child. In truth, she was not overly fond of the name Bruce for a kid so it all worked out but no one really ever needed to know that.

“I will have you know I am now seriously contemplating giving you the Worlds Best Funcle plaque Bruce has been tirelessly painting for you as a Christmas gift this year DaVinci.” The term Funcle showed that Natasha found the situation and the feisty XO rather amusing.

“I am also on the fence about dialing up Kelly Bordeaux from the Altantis and letting her deal with you.” Kelly and Dante’s relationship was well-known among the two crews and the fact there were legal documents floating about somewhere showing the custody relationship between the two Starfleet officers and the Asian monitor lizard.

Turning her full attention to the Saracen’s Executive Officer, she started to explain the situation in her normal calm voice that held an even tone.

“Sir, Ensign Winters has acquired a two-month-old Panthera uncia,” she paused and corrected herself, “a two-month-old snow leopard.” She gave herself a mental nod of approval as she continued. “While the Ensign’s documentation is all in order, there was a slight problem with the transit. Starbase 38, which the animal passed through, has reported multiple cases of Mugarian Feline disease. Due to this, the animal as well as any other cargo that passed through this facility must be quarantined and cleared before allowing it aboard.”

“No ma’am. No Ma’am*,” Mayvonne spoke up holding out a finger with her full emotional sassiness erupting in each word that seemed to have the intonation to double both as a retort or an exclamation in a church setting. “You did not....just say it is a damn rrrahhhhrr cat. See I told you,” Mayvonne dropped the clawed imitation she and Natasha had been miming earlier.

Narrowing her eyes she looked at Natasha and crossed her arms and she raised one eyebrow. “You wanna start telling me sorry or how ‘bout you replay here for Colter,” Mayvonne paused to fluff her hair some and send him a flirty wink before turning her attention back to Natasha, “the whole part of this is not a vicious predator that is going to eat our faces off when we sleep one night.” Turning her attention back to Colter, Mayvonne gave him a warm smile. “Not yours though. Man, I got you,” she replied to Colter again in the middle of her tirade.

“She said it was vaccinated,” Natasha started to defend herself. “It is vaccinated right,” she looked to Laju to confirm.

She also conceded, “yes, the animal has been vaccinated for the disease, however Starfleet Medical Protocol still requires a clearance in this matter prior to any cargo being allowed through the quarantined fields. I have submitted the appropriate request to have the animal as well as the other cargo that came aboard from the same transport cleared.”

She continued to explain the situation, “In hopes of assisting the Ensign in receiving her animal, I called the sick bay to inquire about having someone clear the animal.” Eghimea intentionally left out the emotional side of the conflict and what she deemed to be disrespectful behavior on the Ensign’s part. ‘If the Executive Officer cares that deeply he can view the security recordings of the bay,’ she rationalized. ‘Or he could ask me directly in a more private setting about the irrational state the Ensign was currently in,’ she added to her own thought.
Nala’s ears pined back against her head and her tail wiped back an forth. Her fangs barely visible behind a near silent growl. How convent she left out the part about throning her with a blaster. She kept her hands behind her back carefully counseling her claws.

“Sadly, my attempt was misguided as the CMO had informed me moments ago that such clearance is handled via Science and not Medical,” she felt the sting of guilt and failure in her own voice as she admitted to her mistake that led to the CMO becoming involved in this unpleasant matter.

• 2nd Lieutenant Laju Eghimea

DaVinci listened to the detailed report for the security officer and nodded to her. “Thank you, Lt. I don’t believe you did anything wrong in asking Dr. Knight to come down. And it seems you followed the proper protocols, except that slight breach No harm, no foul.”

“Hold up say what,” Mayvonne’s spicy slang cut through the space as she pulled out a tricorder and scanned Colter.

“I am scanning you DaVinci lookin’ for dat crazy virus that seems to be affect ya’ll’s damn mind ‘cause we are talking about a panther. Not some laying ‘round rodent collector but a full-arsed zoo cat.”

Next, he turned to Nala. “Lt. Laju did what was required of her to do, Ensign Winters. So, what is the issue?”

Colter (XP/CIO)

” The 2nd Lieutenant is leaving out details. The issue is that he cannot be left in that continent until someone decides there going to clear him, he is a 2-month-old cub and needs care. I’m not going to risk his death I highly drought star fleet would be happy to hear he starved to death.” Nala said trying desperately to keep the growl out of her voice. Nala shot Laju another glare. The terrorist planed this she was sure of it.
Ensign Nala

“Maybe we should call Teller,” Natasha suggested. It was not that she was incapable of scanning the thing but a second opinion was never a bad thing.

Natasha Knight CMO