Disclaimer: I don't own Star Trek. Reviews are welcome. I don't own any characters other than Fenix Flarestone. Enjoy and stay ethical y'all.
Chapter 17: Golden Eye 007
Previously…
"That's it!" She exclaimed out loud. Realizing she wasn't talking to anyone, she cleared her throat at her chagrin. No wonder Lore's been hostile towards Data. He sees him as a threat, the only other competition that could challenge him if he wanted to. His feelings of inadequacy caused by his father has been reignited by Data... again. Lore... the more you try to put Fenix in a cage, the more likely she'll instinctively try to fly away... right into Data's arms. "Oh dear… and mother wonders why I prefer to be single." she shook her head. Her computer alerted her she had a message, "What now? I'm tired. Go away." Deanna whined. Sighing as she sat down, she checked her message and pinched her nose, "Speak of the devil… mother wants to visit. Great." she mumbled and massaged her temples, "I need a nap."
The following days evolved into a routine. Lore would wake up Fenix so she could get ready for 'school' and he would perform a diagnostics test for his positronic net. A little later, he would go see Deanna for a counselling session. He wanted to be a better man for Fenix's sake. He knew she deserved better and he wanted to be able to give her what she needed and deserved. Knowing Fenix was seeing Data for her necessary tutoring tested his psyche. It was extremely difficult to not go back to his old ways and become blinded with jealousy. He wished it was as easy as turning off a switch so he didn't feel those emotions, but he would rather tolerate the negative ones if it meant experiencing what he felt when he was near Fenix. It's worth the struggle. You're worth every struggle I endure. He loved everything she did, even just watching her eat strawberry shortcake for breakfast would bring a smile to his face. Everything he did, it was for her. Thoughts of her always flooded his neural net. When Fenix was done her studying, he was usually done his counselling session around the same time. That's what he always looked forward to was when she was done 'school'. They would get together and go to the holodeck to enjoy each other's company. Fenix always had the best ideas when it came to having fun. He wondered if it was because she was still young or that she was from a different time or because this was another unique trait she possessed. Either way, he enjoyed this precious time. They would have fun in the holodeck for a few hours, then head to 10-forward so Fenix is fed. There, he enjoyed kissing her in front of all the males that ogled her from afar, it showed everyone she was taken and he was her chosen one. It was even better when Fenix would blush and her mysterious purple eyes burned with passion when he finished kissing her. Sometimes, he would purposely kiss her in a very particular way to instantly arouse her. After all, he had the advantage of knowing exactly how to touch her. I know she needs a little push to get her to give in to her urges she tries hard to deny. It's just innocent manipulation. He knew exactly what he was doing. She then would grab his hand and bee-line back to their room where he then would pleasure her. She was still coy and didn't want to proceed their intimacy any further. Lore was drinking his silicon-based concoction as he watched her eating breakfast. She's still only seventeen, soon to be eighteen. I've already crossed the line with what we've been doing. Always telling me she's not ready to go further… I understand completely. I can hold myself back, at least that's what I keep telling myself. He looked at her dainty little hand holding a fork with strawberry shortcake on the end. But I do love it when you touch me... You just love to make my promise to you harder to keep, don't you? She wiped away the whipped cream that fell on her chin, his eyes never leaving her. You're lucky I'm not biological. You're lucky I don't have needs… but desire, I do have. I want to connect with you on every level. Then, his eyes lowered to her bare legs. I could just eat you up. Devour you.
Today he had an idea for their 'holodeck hangout', he wanted to see her old home from her time and her beloved cat that she mentioned. He was jittery with anticipation to see her. He walked to Data's quarters and saw her leave his room just as he approached. She greeted him with a hug and a chaste kiss as they made their way to the holodeck. "Fenix, I want to see your old home from your time and to meet your cat. I'm curious." Lore stated. "Yeah, that's a great idea! It's been years since I've seen my old place and my asshole cat. And I can show my badass truck that I fixed up, too. He's precious. Oh! And video games." She boasted. "Video games?" He questioned. "Yeah, man! Since I made a lot of money from Celestial Snow, I bought a bunch of awesome material crap to entertain me. It's easier to show you than me try to explain." Then she commanded the computer, "Earth, year 2002, Long Beach, California, 1551 Lily Ave." She marvelled in nostalgia as her old room materialized around them. Posters of Motley Crue, Social Distortion, Stone Temple Pilots, Ozzy Osborne, Rancid, and NOFX were plastered on the walls. A couple of guitars, one acoustic, one electric, an amp where tucked away in one corner and a drum-set on the other side. The one walls had a console stand with a TV, a PS2, N64, and a GameCube. Another stand with a bunch of CDs, VHS, DVDs and vinyl records were next to the TV stand. There was also a dresser with a CD player, a record player, and an Ugly Kid Joe CD with a few guitar picks scattered across it. Lore smirked seeing her disastrous room. She's messily organized… There's a definite order to this chaos, but perhaps not to the naked eye. Lore smiled warmly when he saw a picture of Fenix when she was about thirteen or fourteen with her dad. She hasn't really changed much, she's always had a more youthful looking face than most people, she calls it 'baby face' with disgust, I prefer to call it perfection. She's as matured as she'll get, she won't look any older than what she looks like now. I'll have a perpetual-teenaged-bride. Bride...? Wife... That has a pleasant sound to it. It would be nice to make her officially mine. A ring on her little finger would symbolize to everyone she belongs to me. Wouldn't that be satisfying? He remembered his dream he had a while back when they were married in that dream. He steered his focus back to her room he was standing in. There were the essentials, a bed, a desk with a computer and a closet with clothes with a skateboard shoved into the corner. This room is the embodiment of Fenix to the core. It even smells like her in here with another scent that I can't seemed to pinpoint. Not her father or mother… something else. Lore was scanning through the plethora of different items he's never seen with unbridled curiosity.
While he was inspecting everything, Fenix went to find her cat. She spotted him and picked him up. A giant black coloured Maine Coon with yellow eyes wore a spiked collar with an engraved tag that said, 'Mr. Big'. Lore saw her walk back into the room with the giant fluffy cat in her arms, she let the cat down and it strutted up to Lore and did figure eights around his legs. Ah, that's what I was smelling. Her cat. His face lit up at the big, black ball of fluff with legs. Fenix laughed and introduced her cat, "Lore, this is my temperamental asshole cat, Mr. Big. I named him after a junk food I used to eat all the time. He usually hates everyone but I think he's crushing on you. He'll probably let you pick him up, just a warning, you'll be covered in fluff." Lore smile as he petted Mr. Big and greeted him, "Hello Mr. Big, my name's Lore. So, you're the one who kept my Fenix company when she was a child." and picked him up. Mr. Big blinked slowly at Lore letting him know he likes him. "I find your sub-vocal oscillations intriguing, Mr. Big." She was amazed that Mr. Big wasn't attacking Lore. "He really digs you, Lore. You should be grateful, he's usually a total rude-ass to everyone!" and she petted him while Lore held him in his arms. He was smiling like a little kid in a candy store. "Felis catus are great! They're the cutest domesticated carnivorous mammals I've ever seen." Fenix chuckled and agreed, "Totally. They make the cutest little predators. I really missed Mr. Big." and nuzzled her face into Mr. Big for a moment, "When I was pushed into the future, I always wished I could've brought him with me." Lore noticed loneliness in her eyes as she stroked Mr. Big and he suggested, "We could get one. It'll be part of our little family. It won't be Mr. Big but I think you'd still enjoy its company. I know I would." Fenix looked up to meet his yellow eyes that resembled Mr. Big's eyes and smiled, "I would love that. I don't like kids, but I love cats. I loved being a cat-mom." She chuckled. Lore smiled and replied, "Good. I don't like children either. They're bothersome." He put Mr. Big down and looked around the room some more.
Fenix gave Lore a tour of the modest house and made their way to the garage where her matte-black 1979 Chevy pick-up resided. Fenix smiled brightly at the sight of her truck, "This is Black Death. The first time I saw this bad-boy, it was love at first sight." She gently stoked the hood, "Took a lot of work to get him up and running, even just to get him to the house. When I was able to at least get him in the garage, I spent a lot of time and money to replace all the parts. A lot of sweat, blood and tears were shed, but it was well worth the struggle. He was very temperamental and difficult to fix for my then nine-year-old brain." Lore marvelled at the large ancient vehicle as she continued, "Now he's in better condition than all the newer vehicles. Growls like a beast, and runs like me. I did an engine swap and now it runs on diesel instead of gas. No muffler. I like it loud." she giggled as she popped the hood letting Lore look at inside workings she worked hard to rebuild. She saw potential in something someone discarded. She gave it another chance, never giving up on it and built it from the ground up, painstakingly improving it little by little so it surpassed its former glory... like me. Fenix, your values are unique and admirable. His sentimental thoughts were disrupted as she asked, "Well? You wanna go for a ride?" He grinned and replied, "Is that even a question?" She chuckled as she demanded, "Get in, loser. We're boldly going!"
Fenix opened the glovebox and retrieved her keys and aviator sunglasses, she leaned across and unlocked the passenger door, letting Lore in. He opened the door and hopped in. The weight of him rocked the truck making her giggle. Turning the ignition half way, she waited for the glow plugs to warm up, then turned the key all the way. Black Death responded with a deep feral growl as it spat out black smoke. 'Turbo Lover' came on and Fenix laughed loudly with pure joy, "Guess I was listening to Judas Priest the last time I drove, huh?" "Seems so. You can't go wrong with Judas Priest." The two nodded in agreement. Lore was grinning like an idiot, the thrill of a powerful loud machine combined with music he enjoyed was a rush for him. She shifted into gear and left the house and drove off, destination unknown. Lore watched Fenix shifting gears, he watched her foot work, he figured out the workings in moments. Fenix started, "This song is the perfect driving song, but now, it just makes me think of you." Lore laughed "I agree. The song describes me very accurately both figuratively and literally to an extent." He chuckled and continued, "Black Death is fantastic. It's loud, powerful, spits out black smoke when you accelerate, and runs perfectly, it's very... metal. Suits you very much." Fenix smiled and agreed, "Right? It's totally bitchin'." They did loser-laps while Fenix gave him a tour of the town she used to live in. He noticed she drove mildly aggressively. She would tail-gate other drivers if they were going under the speed limit and spit black smoke at them when she passed them. Lore chuckled, finding amusement in her rude attitude. There's that feeling again… This connection with her… it's like a bond. But it feels like it's still… incomplete. Is this the reason why I desire her so much? He felt his soul yearning for her, he wanted her so much it hurt. She let him drive around for a bit, she enjoyed seeing Lore so happy remembering how he used to be so cynical and guarded when they first met.
Afterwards, they drove back to Fenix's house and she explained and show him how gaming consoles worked. She picked out a selection of two-player games and let Lore choose them. They played Dr. Mario, SuperSmash Bros., Tetris, Golden Eye 007, Duke Nukem, and Mortal Combat to name a few. They stuck to Golden Eye 007 since Lore was getting into it. He was glued to the TV when Fenix excused herself to go to 10-forward to bring up some food back to the holodeck. She ran into Data at 10-forward when she ordered an extra-large spicy vegetarian pizza, fried chicken and potato wedges, then invited him up to the holodeck to hang out with her and Lore for a couple of hours before his shift started. He obliged and walked to the holodeck with Fenix.
"Hey Lore! I got pizza, chicken and potatoes!" Lore hollered, "YES! I love pizza, bird and tubers!" then turned to see Data, a look of confusion donned his face. Fenix noticed his change in his vibe and reassured, "And I invited Data to hang out with us for a bit until he has to go to work." She chirped. Lore had to stop himself from scowling as he greeted Data. She walked past Lore with her food and petted his head before she sat down on her bed beside him. Data's innocent eyes widened in marvel at the sight of so many foreign objects. "Data, you can sit beside Lore, too. Here, you can play as me." As she handed her controller past Lore and over to Data. She explained how the controls worked and summarized the plot that's happened so far. After a while, Data got the grasp of the game. Lore demanded his younger brother, "No, I need you to cover me, Data. I need to get to there..." He pointed at the TV screen, "...but those snipers are on the roof and keep shooting me." Data's eyes scanned the TV screen and saw what his brother's objective was, "Ah, I see now. I understand." Data and Lore were getting along over Golden Eye. This is just precious. Who would've thought that all we needed was video games to get the Soong brothers to get along? I like to think this is a good step forward to get them to be more friendly. Actually, Data doesn't have any problems with Lore, in fact, he wants to spend time with him to get to know him but Lore kinda has a chip on his shoulder that he's been working on. Lore's been trying really hard. He's been improving since seeing Deanna. I hope eventually he'll become best of friends with Data, after all, they're brothers. They're the only ones in existence as far as we know. Data and Lore were solving problems at a record speed, they would exchange information and assess what probabilities would be most logical to get to the next level. Fenix was intrigued by how accurate they both were. She always knew Lore was extremely accurate but now, there's two of them, which meant puzzles were solved twice as fast. She let the two play, giving them an opportunity to converse with each other and for her to pig out on her food. Lore smelled the food, "Fenix, do you have any food left?" She put a plate together and handed it to him, "Thanks, kid." Then, handed a plate to Data. His eyes widened, "Um… thank you, Fenix." and looked at Lore confusedly. He shrugged as he bit into a piece of chicken, "What? I like how it tastes." Data looked at the pizza and took a bite, "I am able to taste it, but I do not feel anything when I eat it like you do, Lore." Fenix commented, "That sucks ass. I feel bad for you. Can't even enjoy food? I wonder if I can tweak something in your head so you can. Only if you want me to..." Data shrugged, "That has never crossed my mind. Though I am curious, but I also do not think I am missing anything." Fenix cheekily asked, "So… you're not gonna eat that?" Data turned around, "I think I am okay without food, but thank you for the offer. That was very kind of you. Would you like to eat the rest?" She nodded with a smile and he handed her the plate back to her.
Lore occasionally was cracking jokes but poor Data didn't understand them, instead he did a 'Data' laugh to appease Lore. Fenix tried her best to suppress her laughter. Oh my God... this is killing me. Poor Data doesn't understand Lore's jokes but he still does that 'forced laugh'. He tries so hard to be more human, awe... He's doing pretty damn good in other ways, that's for sure. Then there's Lore with his 'are you serious?' expression he gives Data. Then Data give him the 'what the fuck' look or the 'I don't give a damn' look. Those are classified as emotions, Data. Holy shit, this is too hilarious!
Two hours flew by and Data was called to the bridge. He thanked and bid good-night to Fenix and Lore as he left. Fenix was still smirking, thinking about the brothers' interactions. Lore looked at her wondering what she found so amusing. She didn't say anything except, "Lore, let's go to 10-forward and have a few drinks or something. I'm going to try and convince Guinan to give us the real stuff, maybe she'll bend this time." Lore shook his head as he chuckled and said, "I could just get it for you, you know? But if you insist on attempting your way, I won't stop you." They reached 10-forward and Fenix twirled as she took a seat at the counter, "Hey Guinan! I really like your hat today." She smiled all too enthusiastically. Guinan chuckled, rolling her eyes, "Hello Fenix. Lore. Well, thank you for the compliment. I do like this hat actually..." Fenix leaned in and spoke in a hushed voice, "So um… Guinan. What if I told you I know someone that can hook you up with some really- and I mean really nice hats? Would you um… slip some of that Romulan ale under the table?" and winked. Lore had a hard time trying not to chuckle. Guinan glanced at Lore and then back to Fenix with a smirk, "Girl… you could just get him to get the real deal." Fenix and Lore burst out laughing, "That's what I told her, too." Lore added. Guinan rolled her eyes but kept smirking, "Well… brain damage, liver damage… none of that matters when one regenerates as fast as you, I suppose..." and poured two mugs of Romulan ale. Fenix's smile brightened and squeeled, "AHH! Thank you Guinan! You rock!" Guinan shushed, "Keep it down, girl! Can't let your peers know what I pulled or they won't leave me alone!" and giggled. She saw another customer and warned, "Lore, make sure she behaves." and winked. He gave her a nod and winked back. Once Guinan left to serve the other customers, Lore stated, "I think we need to recreate the holodeck back home." and had a few big glugs of the ale. Fenix rolled her eyes knowing exactly why he wants the holodeck and chuckled, "Video game addict." He was about to retort, instead he smiled and looked down. She then added, "Busted." and nudged his shoulder.
Data was back on the bridge, alone for his night-watch. He went over the usual list and did a quick scan to make sure everything was in order. It was another quiet night, no signs of trouble to come. He sat at the Captain's chair, staring into the star dusted black canvas as he contemplated friendships and family. He replayed the events that's happened the past few days when he began tutoring Fenix, and earlier today when he, Fenix and Lore spent time together in the holodeck playing Goldeneye 007. Family... that was my first and closest experience to a semblance of a family setting. Lore is my older brother, I was able to spent time with him because of Fenix. I never knew a part of me was lacking until they came into my life. When Fenix finishes her exams, they will leave. His eyebrows knit together. My neural pathways have become much accustomed to their sensory input... I will miss them. If Fenix was never exiled to Omicron Theta, she would not have met Lore and reactivated him. Even if we arrived and reactivated him, the probability of him being not be as pleasant as he is now would be higher. He might have even been a possible danger to us. Fenix fixed his emotion program. Thus, he is able to tolerate humans and love her. Without Fenix, I am certain I would not have been able to bond with my brother. I am forever grateful for her to, in a way, become part of our family and my close friend. These are experiences that have enriched my life so much so, I will forever cherish them in my database. He tilted his head when he had a realization. I have noticed I am drawn to her. A magnetic pull of some sort. I do not know how else to describe it... It is a feeling within my chest cavity. Maybe a diagnostic test might be needed. Yes, I shall do that before I see Fenix tomorrow morning. Data put his hand over his chest, making sure everything is right as rain.