Thanks, everyone, for the great comments on this story so far. And in case you've been wondering (although remember what happens to cats that get curious), this is the chapter where we find out what the cats are named.
CHAPTER 4
Trip put the cage on one of the biobeds when they arrived in sickbay. Both cats' ears swiveled around, trying to locate the source of the sounds coming from the doctor's menagerie. The swishing of the orange one's tail didn't bode well for the creatures. Hoshi made a mental note not to allow the cats alone in sickbay.
When she opened the cage door, the orange one stepped right out and paced the length of the biobed. The gray one remained in the back of the cage.
"Cats!" Phlox said when he came around the partition. "My friend Doctor Lucas has a cat. Delightful animals!"
He lapsed into silence. Hoshi bit her lip to keep from laughing out loud. Doctor Phlox and the orange cat were engaged in a staring contest, and she had no idea which one would blink or look away first.
Then Phlox reached out and stroked the cat's head. A loud purring immediately rumbled from its chest and its eyes closed in catly ecstasy.
"Well, you're quite sociable, aren't you?" Phlox said with a huge grin as the cat opened its eyes again. Looking at Hoshi, Phlox added, "I assume you're here to have the cats checked for health problems before they settle in."
"Does everyone on board know about them?" Hoshi asked. It was hard to keep a secret in a small, closed community, but the cats hadn't even been on board for two hours. This had to be a new record for gossip dissemination, even by Enterprise standards.
"The captain informed me I was to have two 'patients' to check," the doctor said as he continued to stroke the cat. "Luckily, I delved into the mysteries of cat medicine after meeting Doctor Lucas' pet. Remarkable creatures, really. Spend much of their time sleeping or resting. At other times, they are given to unexpected outbursts of energy. Why, one time--"
"I don't mean to interrupt," Trip said, "but I've got to get down to Engineering. Rostov and Kelly are still trying to track down that problem with the injectors, and I need to see if they've made any progress."
"Thanks, Trip," Hoshi said, and he waved as he moved toward the door.
"Meow!"
Hoshi looked over to see the orange cat at the end of the biobed closest to the door, its tail thrashing to and fro as it watched Trip leave.
"You're right, Hoshi. I think that one's getting attached to Trip," Travis said. Standing up from where he'd been lounging against another of the beds, he added, "I need to get going, too. Are you going to be able to get them back to your cabin OK?"
Before Hoshi could answer, Malcolm said, "I'll stay and carry them back when they're finished."
After Travis departed, Phlox began running a scanner over the orange cat, which batted at the device as the doctor moved it around him.
"Definitely an Earth cat," Phlox said, his eyes on the scanner's readout. "Male. Healthy, although a bit overweight. I'll need to take a blood sample to check for some of the more common ailments that can afflict felines."
"So he's male," Hoshi said. "What's the other one?"
Phlox held the device over the gray cat, scanning through the cage. "This one is male as well. His health is much the same as his brother's. And both have been neutered."
"His brother's?" Hoshi asked.
"Yes. They are from the same litter," Phlox confirmed as he looked at the scanner's readout.
"They certainly don't look anything alike," Malcolm said. "Except for their size, of course."
"Different colorings are not uncommon in mixed breed cats from the same litter," Phlox said. "But you'll notice that the orange coat has lighter markings in the classic tabby pattern. They're not as noticable as the ones on his brother."
The orange one picked that moment to begin purring again. Hoshi smiled.
"You know what that reminds me of?" she said. "It sounds like the warp engine when it's cranked up to about Warp 3."
The purring became louder.
"Or maybe Warp 4," she amended.
"If it gets any louder, he's going to breach," Malcolm said over the rumbling.
"That's it!" Hoshi said. "You just gave me an idea for his name."
Both men looked at her expectantly.
"I'm going to name him Warp Core," she said.
Phlox raised his eyebrows as he contemplated the name, but Malcolm frowned.
"Warp Core?" Malcolm said. "Isn't that rather...unusual?"
"The captain told me to pick appropriate names for them," she said stubbornly. "What could be more appropriate for a starship cat than Warp Core? Besides, he does seem to have taken a fancy to Trip. An engineering-related name fits."
Malcolm shrugged and Phlox chuckled.
"What about the other one?" Phlox asked, gesturing to the gray-striped cat still huddled in the back of the cage.
"I don't know yet," she said. "Maybe I'll have another inspiration."
Phlox turned to his medical tray and picked up a hyposyringe.
"I need to get blood samples," he said. "You may have to restrain them. Some animals don't like to have this done, even though it's painless."
Hoshi moved over and firmly grasped Warp Core, holding him in place on the biobed. He uttered a small grunt in protest but didn't struggle. Phlox was able to extract a blood sample quickly with no problem.
When Hoshi released him, however, Warp Core haughtily turned his back on them and jumped off the bed. He began an inspection of sickbay.
"The other one needs to be out of the cage for the procedure," Phlox said. "Hold him securely."
Taking a deep breath, Hoshi inserted her arm into the cage. This cat was different from his brother. He was more cautious and liable to put up a fuss if he thought he was going to be hurt. She grasped him by the scruff of the neck and pulled him out as all four paws scrabbled for purchase to stop his exit from the relative safety of the cage.
She held him tightly in her arms to keep from spoiling Phlox's attempt to extract blood.
"Hurry up, Doctor!" she said as she grappled with the protesting cat. "He's got -- Ow! -- claws."
Phlox reached over and got the sample, and Hoshi loosened her hold. The cat immediately sprang from her arms and, like a bolt of dark silver lightning, streaked for the sickbay doors, which were opening to admit someone.
"Stop him, Malcolm!" Hoshi cried.
Malcolm dove for the cat, grabbing it as he landed flat out on the deck at Captain Archer's feet. In the tussle, the zipper of Malcolm's jumpsuit had been pulled down several inches, and the scared cat tried to burrow inside.
Hoshi couldn't make up her mind whether to laugh or cry. She glanced at Jon's face, which appeared to be impassive, but she thought she saw a smile lurking around the edges of his mouth.
Jon reached over and thumbed the button to close the door.
"That should keep your prisoner confined to sickbay," Jon said, looking down at Malcolm. All that could be seen of the gray cat was its tail. The rest was hidden inside Malcolm's uniform.
Malcolm pushed himself upright just as the cat rearranged itself, pulling its tail in and sticking its head out of the uniform's opening. Jon leaned over and gave Malcolm a hand, pulling him to his feet.
"Thank you, sir," Malcolm said, moving his other arm up to support the cat on his chest and keep it from sliding down any farther inside his uniform.
"He reminds me of another patient I've had in sickbay," Phlox said with a straight face, looking pointedly at Malcolm, "except the cat's faster than you are, Lieutenant Reed."
Hoshi began to laugh as Malcolm's cheeks took on a pink tinge, and Jon let out a small chuckle.
"Can I help you, Captain?" Phlox inquired.
"I came down for some aspirin," Jon replied. "I have a headache, but I think what I just saw helped get rid of at least some of it."
Malcolm's cheeks turned an even darker shade. To make matters worse, the cat put its front legs on the tactical officer's shoulders, stuck its nose in his face, and licked the tip ofhis nose.
Hoshi picked picked up a faint sound. It was the first time she'd heard the cat purr since the shuttlepod.
"He looks like he feels safe with you, Malcolm," Hoshi said. "Even after you tackled him."
Warp Core picked that moment to sashay over. He sat down directly in front of Jon and looked up at the tall man.
"This one seems a lot calmer," Jon noted.
"Warp Core has a lot of self-confidence," Hoshi said, moving over to help Malcolm pry the gray cat out of his uniform.
The cat had other ideas. It had its paws behind Malcolm's neck, hanging on with its front claws stuck in the armory officer's collar.
"Warp Core? That's what you named him?" Jon asked. He squatted and began stroking the orange cat. "What about the other one?"
"I haven't come up with a name yet," Hoshi said.
"If I might make a suggestion," Phlox said.
Hoshi was still trying to unhook the cat's claws from Malcolm's collar. "Sure," she said distractedly.
"Seeing how fast it moved and how it likes Lieutenant Reed, how about Phase Pistol?"
Hoshi finally succeeded in removing the cat from Malcolm, but it was Malcolm who answered the doctor.
"No, not Phase Pistol," he said. "The beam from a phase pistol is bright. This cat is more like a torpedo, silver in coloring and silent in flight."
"Torpedo!" Hoshi said, hugging the softly purring cat in her arms. "Perfect."
"Meow!" seconded Warp Core.
Malcolm helped bring the cats back to her cabin after Phlox finished their examinations. She wound up carrying the cage with Warp Core in it while Torpedo, who had adamantly refused to re-enter the cage, nestled in Malcolm's arms as they walked along.
When they arrived at her cabin, they found a small pile of items at her door. Somehow Travis had rounded up a litter box, scoop, and litter.
The accompanying note pointed out that since he'd found the equipment, he'd done his part to welcome the cats. In case that wasn't clear enough, he'd added in large block letters: I don't do litter boxes.
The box looked suspiciously like one of the plastic bus tubs from the mess hall. The scoop looked like one of the utensils Chef used when he prepared vegetables in a small deep fryer. She hoped Travis wasn't going to get in trouble for taking them, especially if Chef found out what they were being used for.
The litter looked like common sand. They had some items like that in storage, although, for the life of her, Hoshi couldn't think of why they'd need sand on a starship.
She put the box in the bathroom. It just fit between the commode and the shower, for which she was thankful. She really didn't want to have the litter box in the main cabin, which was where it would have gone if it hadn't fit in the bathroom.
Both cats watched with interest as she filled the box with sand. Both used it with no urging from her, thank goodness.
That evening, as she got into bed, she reminded herself to ask Travis where he'd gotten everything. At the very least, she'd have to replenish the sand supply.
And she'd have to talk to Chef for sure. She had only a single can of tuna left, and no idea what other suitable food for cats was available.
The captain had made it clear he didn't want the cats to cause problems, so they'd have to be confined. She hoped they wouldn't get bored, cooped up in her cabin by themselves all day long.
She snuggled down farther under the blanket. Warp Core was curled up by her feet on the bed and Torpedo was stretched out next to her head, and their muted purring lulled her to sleep.