A Bone to Pick

Posted on 08/24/2020 @ 4:33pm by

Mission: S2E1: The Skunil Incident
Location: CMO's Office
Timeline: Day 40 at 1840

Looking back upon his personal logs, it dawned on Kieran that nearly a month and a half vanished without notice. A period of time, lost behind him from a transport journey that seemed only a few hours ago. Yet he had already witnessed another cadre of enlisted arrive in his short period, in addition to investigating the surface of a ghost colony. One previously hopeful for a group of brave frontiers-persons. Coming about he wasn’t certain if ship life would be for him, although reflecting on the circumstances he presently lived in it was considerably better than he anticipated. The same couldn’t be said for his dearest companion though, a gift himself from a close friend. Sherlock had adjusted, but still eagerly awaited the moments when the officer returned to his quarters.

There was no arboretum on-board the Crazy Horse, unlike that of Earth where nature was plentiful. Certainly enough one might suggest the holodeck, which offered a tolerable substitute, but it was a far cry to admit it might be the same for an arm-sized creature. One accustomed to life on a colony, and having only spent a few hours in space prior to leaving from his earlier home. Sherlock may have only needed a few things to live, but existing wasn’t much of a life. He needed socialisation, and more importantly a healthy life balance. One of those was as simple as a feed which unfortunately wasn’t exactly plentiful in terms of variety. The stash Kieran had brought with him had nearly become depleted, and after looking through the replicator menu he couldn’t exactly claim to be impressed. There were canine supplements, but the majority were intended for grown animals — it would be better to get a custom blend, if anything.

Yet another unfortunate circumstance…there was no veterinarian aboard. The nearest substitute was that of Chet, the resident chief medical officer. A pleasant fellow the diplomat had enjoyed working alongside prior, yet only having the barest of opportunities to broach a personal matter wasn’t much. Offering the last rites demanded his full attention to be respectful; it was an effort he wasn’t about to slam and fail, particularly given his station as the effective expert on cultural matters. He’d slipped a brief comment to see if the doctor was open to discussing a personal matter, but hadn’t gone into detail beyond that during their assignment.

All of a day later, he’d knocked on the man’s office door with Sherlock in arm. With any luck the two would be able to face this challenge, together. Or at least that was his hope. If they could put their minds together for a task far more daunting though, he hoped fortune spoke in their favour.

"It's open," called Chet, signalling the door to do just that. "Hello, Lieutenant. And who's this handsome fella? It is a fella, right?"

Kieran tapped the door access with his elbow before passing through. "Thank you," he admitted to the professional. A vibrant grin shifted over his lips as the attention smoothly transitioned to the subject of their encounter. "This would be Sherlock. The personal matter I mentioned earlier when we were diving through rites. Life aboard a starship is new for him, even moreso than me. I wondered if you might be willing to help find a way for him to adjust." Scratching the back of his head, Kieran drew a straight expression in a feeble attempt to hide embarrassment. "I'm also running a bit low on the food chosen for his diet, and the replicators don't exactly have a wide variety of selections. Nor anything for puppies."

"Absolutely," agreed Chet cheerfully, allowing the puppy to sniff his fingers before scratching behind his ears. "Pleased to meet you, Sherlock. I wish I could say I'm Watson, but alas! No go. Instead, my name is Chet and that's something we're both just going to have to live with. Anyway!" he added, standing from his desk and rubbing his hands together. "Let's take him out to a bio bed and I'll pull up the specs for his breed, which is....?"

The pup gave a soft howl from the attention, panting happily soon thereafter. "You may well be the Watson for this expedience," Kieran interjected with a hint of glee. "But I appreciate it nonetheless." Following the doctor over to the bio-bed, the shorter male placed the companion atop. Sherlock curiously sniffed around before curling up into a small ball and laying in satisfaction.

"Klee Kai, actually. I was given him by an old friend. There's not many of them left from what I'm told -- they weren't all that common to begin with." Looking the dog over, Kieran loosely began to draw his palm over the creature as a petting measure to offer some physical comforts. "Very active though. Lots of energy." As if Sherlock could sense being talked to he yawned before stretching out, bathing the hand in licks. "...and very affectionate."

“I can see that,” replied Chet with a grin as he began running some scans on the pup. “Have you tried Any of the supplements in the computer to see if he at least liked them? Then we’ll have an idea of what flavor to make it.”

A brief shake of the head came from the younger male. "Not quite; they're only labeled by number and for adult pets. Didn't want to risk it without a professional's input." He pulled a label out from his pocket, placing it onto the biobed. "That's from the packaging of his previous feed though. Usually kept chilled, raw. I believe the last batch was elk meat with bone ground in. He's also had chicken with bones. Given how things are on Earth though...I'd imagine mostly lab cultured, if not entirely."

“Doesn’t sounds like he’s too picky,” replied Chet, taking out a hyposyringe and loading an empty phial. “That’s good news. It’ll make our job easier.” He quickly extracted a blood sample and took it to a nearby console for analysis, pressing a few buttons to ensure the computer realized that this was canine blood. “I’ll also consult with veterinarians familiar with dogs. Hopefully I can have an idea in a couple of days. Still, we may as well get a baseline health assessment from him while he’s here.”

"So far as I can tell, not in the slightest. He's definitely the type to just appreciate attention," the pet's partner admitted half-way through a chuckle. "Then again, I suppose at his age if all your basic requirements are being fulfilled you're pretty easy to keep happy." The marine's eyes looked to the blood sample, briefly bobbing his head forth a hint as acceptance for the suggested plan. "Sounds good to me. I may be new at this, but I doubt I'm the first person to want the best for someone important to them."

He looked at the monitor the doctor had pulled to the side for the analysis. "Any recommendations you might give so far as keeping him active? Right now I take him around the deck loop near the quarters so he can at least get a little bit of walking in, when he isn't cooped up. Pity we don't have an arboretum, but hey. Can't have everything."

Chet thought about that for a moment. "I don't suppose this ship is equipped with hologram emitters in quarters," he finally said. "Not many are. I would suggest leaving a holographic dog for him to play with. You know. After you remove everything breakable," he added with a grin. "Other than that, I'm sure there's a dog park program in the holodecks."

Momentary puzzlement sprayed over Kieran's expression as he thought over the issue. "Never considered that. I'd be surprised if it didn't though, in this decade. Most modern ships are, and while this isn't a brand new ship...it isn't falling apart at the weld-marks either." He drummed his fingers next to Sherlock to grasp his attention, chuckling as the pup licked at them and curled underneath his palm. "That sounds like a great idea though. I'm certain he'll appreciate it."

Looking to the monitor, then back to his charge the diplomat hummed. "Anything else you need from me until you hear back from colleagues?"

"No, I think I've got enough information to be getting on with," replied Chet. I'll let you know when I've got some ideas for you."

---

A Mission Post by:

Dr. Chester “Chet” O’Hamlin
Chief Medical Officer
USS Crazy Horse

And

1LT Kieran Nachtgeist
Chief Diplomatic Officer
USS Crazy Horse