312: Be Our Guest

by Lair Kellyn
80609.16
After Captain, It Followed Me Home

-=Aerowing Dock, USS Serendipity=-

Satisfied that everyone had returned from the mission in something at least akin to one piece, Zanh Liis nodded with satisfaction and prepared to take her leave of the bay.

The team paused in their tracks instead of falling into step behind her.

"Sir," Rada Dengar called, and turned back, blinking expectantly.

"What. . .what do we do with Mim?"

"What do you mean, what do we do with Mim?"

"Well, he. . .sort of. . .requested asylum before we left the planet."

Zanh's expression remained unchanged, save her left eyebrow which twitched and then slowly elevated up and toward the ceiling at an astonishingly steep angle.

The little bot rolled forward toward her, pincers held together hopefully, almost as in prayer. His bright blue beams shone up at her with the innocence of a child's eyes.

He rolled toward her as Zanh took a step forward, and bounced off the toe of her boot. Squealing with fright, Mim back-tread as fast as he could and hid behind Dengar's leg.

"He did, did he." Zanh said at last. She realized suddenly that everyone on the team without exception was staring at her, awaiting her ruling.

"Well, folks, look. It's late, and I have an officer still down in Sickbay. We'll have to argue the logistics and practical applications of granting an artificial life form any sort of asylum," Zanh's voice betrayed an eye roll even though her orbs stayed fixed on Mim. "...tomorrow. In the meantime, don't let it near the computer, don't let it wander around unaccompanied and whatever you do, don't tell anyone it's here."

"I took the liberty of writing up a quick report about how it happened while we were on the way back," Rada held out a PADD toward Zanh tentatively, and she quickly took it.

She looked into his eyes and realized if he'd taken this much trouble, then there was definitely more going on here than a hitchhiking piece of computer equipment. She'd have to ponder this situation. Carefully.

"Thank you. I promise you, I'll read it as soon as I look in on Tryst. Now all of you, get some rest. I don't want to see any of you again before morning. Scat."

The group broke apart, and as they were all preoccupied with their thoughts they almost left Mim behind in the bay.

"Excuse me," Mim chirped softly, "Should Mim stay here?"

Zanh sighed, and looked back at the assembled group. Whom should she stick with the task of bot-sitting for the night? The entire team looked exhausted, but they all also seemed for some reason invested in the little thing, and so she was sure that none would refuse to perform the duty, if asked.

She surveyed their expressions, one by one. Hok appeared nervous, his feet ahead of all the others in moving toward the exit with haste. Dane looked like Dane always looked; pissed off. Yet Keiran looked equally irritable, taking them each out of the running.

Zanh knew that the first thing Breaux would want was to be briefed on the Tryst situation; Dengar needed to be brought up to speed by his engineers, as well.

That left her with Grace, Reece, Salvek and Lair.

Grace would do a fine job, nurturing little-kitten-rescuing woman she was.

However, she was married to Reece, and Reece would either stay up all night introducing Mim to cartoons on television or he'd take him onto the holodeck and somehow find a way to get the both of them locked in there with the safeties off before morning.

Or, heaven forbid, he and Mim would spend all night chasing Grace's poor cat around until the thing either shredded Mim's internal wiring with his claws or sank his teeth into Reece out of sheer desperation to escape. So Reece and Grace were out.

Salvek needed to be ready for duty in the morning, and that left one remaining person fit for the job. . .

"Lair Kellyn," Zanh called, curling her index finger up and then back toward herself, beckoning her fellow Bajoran forward.

Kellyn swore softly before speaking up. She was going to pretend she didn't know what was coming next until the last possible moment. "Yes, Captain?"

"You are to take charge of Mim for the night. I'm sure you'll find some way to feed it or. . . plug it in or. . . whatever the hell you need to do to it. Just... don't leave it alone, don't allow it to interface with the computer until further notice and do not let it near your experiments."

"Aye, Captain." Kellyn's shoulders sank. She liked the little robot, really she did, but she only had one wish at this moment. After seeing the children on the surface and all their suffering, all she wanted was to go and see for herself that Arie was sleeping peacefully in their quarters, then collapse into bed herself.

"In fact, walk with me, Commander, if you please? Bring your friend. Goodnight, all. Get some sleep."

Zanh, Lair, and then finally Mim moved into the corridor and off into the opposite direction from the others. "Share a lift?" Zanh requested.

Kellyn nodded. "C'mon, Mim. Let's go for a ride."

"Thank you." Mim responded brightly, taking in all the sights and sounds around him. "Hello." he said to the panel on the side of the lift door, as though he expected it was going to ask him in return how he was doing, or wish him a nice day.

"I have to record a log entry really quick before I go back to see Vol," Zanh explained, "Bridge." As the lift whirred on,, Zanh turned toward Lair. "Dengar."

Never certain just how to respond to Zanh's one word sentences, Kellyn paused. "What about him, Captain?"

"How'd he do?"

Kellyn's lips parted and formed a wide and genuine smile. "He led," she declared proudly.

"Good. Damn, he learns quickly. I'm going to have to promote that kid again." Zanh decided. "I'll throw another pip at him in the morning. Tell me what you think about this little robot."

"Mim." Mim corrected quickly, but when he saw the glare that his correction elicited from the Captain, he immediately shrank down, eyes disappearing into his box-shaped trunk as he formed a short, stubby cube. "Sorry." His voice echoed sadly from inside of it.

"It's all right, Mim," Zanh sighed. "In fact, I need to talk to you." She could hardly believe she was about to have a conversation with a blue-eyed toaster.

"Yes, Captain?" Mim popped his head up and gave her his full attention.

"You are. . ." Zanh looked way down at the bot. "you are short. I'm going to have to be careful not to step on you."

"Mim is sixty point ninety-six centimeters in height," the robot responded, "Captain is very tall."

Liis nearly laughed, but she restrained herself. "Yes, well. It seems that you are to be a guest on our ship for now," she began sternly, "and as all good guests know, you must obey the rules of the house, or in this case, the ship, if you're going to continue to be welcome. Will you give me your word that you will follow the rules?"

"Mim will follow the rules." He promised with a nod. "Mim wants to stay. Have asylum on the Ser-en-dip-it-ty."

"Yeah, um, we'll see about that. But you heard what I said to Commander Lair before, no accessing the computer unless we give you permission, no going around the ship alone, any of that. Otherwise I'll be forced to confine you and I don't want to have to do that."

"Mim does not like confinement," clearly he'd had experiences with being restrained in the past. "Mim will obey the rules."

"Very well. You will go home with Commander Lair tonight and then we will speak again in the morning, all right?" Zanh looked at Lair, whose smirk said clearly what she was thinking. "I know, Kellyn," Liis sighed. "I'm getting soft in my old age."

"You're not too much older than I am, Zanh Liis, please don't say that." Kellyn's smile faded as she asked, "What happened to Tryst?"

"The Strasa used some sort of technology on him," Zanh whispered, "it's rendered his empathic abilities nonexistent."

"Oh, no," Kellyn frowned, "Can't the LMH, or Avery,"

"I hope so." Zanh inturrupted, as the lift doors opened. "Excuse me, both of you. I'll see you tomorrow." With that, Zanh was gone.

The doors closed again and as Kellyn instructed the lift to take them home, Mim began to rock up and down on his treads.

"Excuse me," Mim spoke up.

"Not now, Mim." Kellyn groaned, exhausted.

"But,"

"Not now." Kellyn's head ached, and she rubbed her tender temples with her fingertips.

"Please?"

Something about the tone of the last word made her stop, and look downward once again. "What IS it?"

"Strasa technology hurt someone here? On your ship?"

"Yes. Someone on our crew."

"Mim knows all about Strasa technology. Maybe Mim can help?"

Kellyn stared at the bot, mouth hanging open. As tired as the Captain was, the thought had not occurred to her, nor to Kellyn before this moment, at all.

"Mim likes to help, especially people as kind as Serendipity crew."

Kellyn reached out and patted Mim gently on the head. This little being that had already had so much asked of it by an entire world full of ungrateful humanoids was already showing concern, and compassion for the life of another; someone he had never even met.

Kellyn thought with amazement that if that act didn't illustrate that Mim possessed all that was represented by the absolute best of all humanity- then nothing could.

"Mim, my friend, we're going to Sickbay." Kellyn declared, tapping her badge to tell Salvek that she wasn't going to be coming home just yet.

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Commander Lair Kellyn
Engineering Research and Development
The Alchemy Project