Disclaimers as in part 1.
Oh dear. The genie has escaped the bottle. This will go a bit more than the 2 chapters I planned, but won't be an epic, promise. OK, couple of premises here.
In the film, 'cupcake' man was not given a name (just appears as Burly Cadet #1). The actor who played him is Jason Matthew Smith, so for this series, I have given him the name and rank of Lt. Jason Smith and he is one of the team in charge of security. Pike recommended him to Kirk as a loyal and excellent officer (even if he's a little headstrong at times). He boxes (something he and my Kirk share in common), is always courteous to the ladies and is the picture of efficiency. (The girls sometimes call him muffin, short for stud muffin, when he's out of earshot).
The weapons to be described are very real ones or based on such. Vulcan words from the Vulcan dictionary.
For those who know my work, you know I love to throw in name games. There are several here, can you find the connections? (I'll tell at the end of the chapter).
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En Garde! 2/?
by Mistress V
"How you feeling, Sulu?" Christine asked as she poked her head into the therapy room.
"Fine!" he yelled over the bubbling hydro spa pool he was reclining in. "I tell you, this is the life."
"You decent?"
"For you? Of course." The helmsman grinned and held out his injured arm. "Thanks, Christine. You're a real pal."
She depressed a hypospray into the inflamed area. "Just doing my job," she reminded him. "I could have told you our little duel in the sun would cause this to flare up."
"How could I resist?" Sulu leaned back against the tub's rim and sighed. "At least I'll be OK for the meeting later. And thanks again for seeing to me." He nodded out the door. "I don't think I could have dealt with Flotsam and Jetsam out there."
"Pbbbt." Christine gave a dismissive purse of her lips. "Len's bark is worse than his bite, he just likes being grumpy. As for Warren, don't let him fool you. He only yells at you because he knows you're doing harm to yourself. He's coming to the meeting tonight, you know, and giving the presentation on injuries like you asked."
"What's he bringing? An M1A1 rocket launcher to scare away patients?" Sulu made a face but he knew the young doctor was really all right.
"Only if it blows bubbles. I don't think Warren has a mean bone in his body."
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Christine was just getting her things together at the end of her shift when Pavel Chekov wandered in. He looked nervous.
"Hi, Ensign Chekov. What brings you here today?" she asked.
"Is---is Dr. Fiskess here?"
"Hi, Pav. Come on through, I have just the thing you need." The physician appeared and waved his patient into a treatment cubicle.
"Are you sure you can stimulate it enough in time?" Chekov's voice carried down the hall.
"Did I hear correctly? What the devil is he on about? Not another of his body building attempts?" Leonard McCoy said at Christine's elbow.
"Trust me, Len, I don't know. If I say hello to him, he turns bright red. He's terribly shy around women, even though he's dying to meet them." It was true. For all his bravado, the young man had his issues now and then.
"It'd help if he wasn't so shy when the situation actually presented itself."
"Oh come on, weren't you his age once?"
"Too long ago," McCoy muttered. "And I was never THAT innocent. Me, I was flirting with the nurses in the delivery room."
"Uh huh." Christine gave her boss a sidelong glance. "The only one who can get him out of his shell right now is Janice, and that's because she treats him like her annoying kid brother. So there's hope for our wonder boy yet. Look, I've gotta run..."
"Are you off to that cockamamie weapons club meeting?" McCoy's voice now rose a notch. "Silliest thing I ever heard. Ancient weapons on a starship, fer cryin' out loud! And how are we going to deal with the injuries? Cutlass lacerations, accidental limb amputations, bullet wounds! I'm a doctor, not a barber surgeon!"
"Relax. We'll make sure the troops are instructed on proper medical precautions."
"Let me be the judge of that."
Christine gave her boss a playful tweak on his left cheek. "Loosen up, Len. You're disturbing the patients."
But McCoy was not about to give up. "That's my right as CMO of this ship..." he began, but his words were lost on his departing head nurse.
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"Chris? Hey wait up!" Christine turned to see Warren Fiskess sprinting to join her turbolift. "Thanks."
"So, what did you bring? I don't see anything that looks like a weapon." She herself had her archery carrier slung neatly over one shoulder.
"You underestimate what a weapon can be." The physician drew out a curious braided leather cord. It was divided into three segments and each had a round, ornately decorated wooden ball tied to one end. "This, my dear colleague, is a jan-u-wine South American boleadora, the same as all those gauchos use."
Christine examined the odd-looking object. "It looks like a glorified eskimo yo-yo. You didn't get that in Boston, did you?"
"I did. When I was interning at St. Eliza's, we had a visiting anesthesiologist from Buenos Aires, and he got me this as a thank you gift. It's a great conversation starter at parties....and after." He gave a lascivious wiggle of his eyebrows.
The turbolift stopped to let on the first officer. "Bridge," he stated. "Good evening."
"Evening, sir," the pair mumbled in unison.
Spock looked curiously at the bag the nurse carried. "Is that your archery equipment, Lieutenant?" he asked pleasantly.
"Yes, sir. We're off to the weaponry club's first meeting."
"From what I have heard, it sounds like a popular destination this evening." He paused as the lift stopped on their requested deck. "Have an enjoyable time."
They wandered down the corridor along with, it seemed, half the off-duty personnel and then some The meeting would also be available via vidcam recording for anyone on duty that was interested in joining.
"Janice!" Christine waved at the blonde yeoman, who was sporting a rather large black belt around her off duty wear. "I didn't know you were going!"
Rand turned around, revealing a large antique pistol stuck under the leather. "Yo ho ho and a bottle of syntheholic rum," she giggled. "Have a look!"
"You the reincarnation of Anne Bonny?" Fiskess asked. "This looks like something out of a pirate chest."
"It should be, I got it in St. Augustine on vacation when I was a kid. But here's the twist." Rand took the weapon back and cocked the trigger. Water spurted out. "It's what I used to keep my brothers in line, but I figure someone here will know more about when and how it was really used."
"That''ll be Sulu."
The trio ran into a traffic jam that turned out to be a large table for check-in. Security staff were capably manning the formalities, which included taking details of any weapons that had not been previously registered to crew members, as well as ensuring all safety latches were secured. The formidable but friendly Lt. Jason Smith was overseeing things. He had a menacing sheathed machete slung across his back.
"Hi, Janice!" Pavel Chekov called out. Rand hurried over to say hello. The ensign was sporting a battered old fedora, an equally worn leather jacket and an ominous-looking (and well-used) bullwhip looped around one shoulder.
"Oh my God, who's he channeling, Indiana Jones?" Christine squinted. "I can't believe it. He looks like he has...stubble! A week's worth!"
"He should, I gave it to him this afternoon." Her co-worker smiled genially. "All in the line of duty."
Christine checked in with a security ensign who had a curious weighted net around his shoulders, much like a shawl. He explained it was part of the weaponry of a specialist Roman era gladiator called a retairius, who was based on a fisherman. What have I gotten myself into, she wondered.
She made her way inside and said hello to Scotty, who had his handsome, twisted handle claymore sword with him. The handle bore his clan's motto, "Amo". The engineer said he'd picked the blade up on his last visit home, a memento of glorious days past, and that it now decorated a wall in his quarters.
The meeting room was thronged with people and every conceivable weapon was represented. It was clear this was going to be a very popular club. Christine was just wondering if there were any other archers in the house when someone tapped her on the shoulder.
"Lieutenant Chapel?"
"Yes?" She looked her companion over, noting he had a traditional archery quiver full of ornately feathered arrows and a beautiful wooden bow, looking to date from medieval European times.
He extended a hand. "I'm Ensign Robert Jenkin from cargo, and I couldn't help but notice your equipment. There are some of us over there, care to join us?"
"Sure, I'd be glad to. Have we met?"
"Not exactly. You work Bridget O'Rourke now and then, don't you?"
"Oh, sure. You know her?" Christine and the Irish woman often worked on projects in bio research.
"Well.....I'm hoping to." The young man looked a little sheepish.
"Nice equipment yourself," she said, steering the conversation into more neutral territory. "It looks English. Late middle ages, if I guess?"
"Absolutely correct, ma'am. Guess you could say considering where I'm from, it was a given. My family lives in Nottingham, and among my relations there's been a priest, a constable, a banker, a felon, and a sergeant major in the Robin Hood Regiment of the British army." He rolled his eyes in amusement. "I'm the whole package, compressed into one."
Jenkin swiftly made introductions. Christine noted archery equipment from ancient Mongolia, present day Brazil, and the old Kansas plains in addition to modern, sophisticated competition gear. The group was soon engrossed in arrowspeak as they found a spot to sit. Up on the dais, Sulu was shouting into the microphone. "If we can take our seats, everyone? It's time to get started and there's a lot on our agenda!"
The doors opened once more to usher in a few late arrivals. Christine noticed Spock among them and was surprised to see he held what looked like a small crossbow. He recognized her and the group she sat with and made his way over. Before she could even think about it, he sat down next to her, nodding politely at the rest of the archery enthusiasts.
"OK, welcome everyone, to our first official meeting of the ancient weapons club, which, as you know, is a personal favorite topic of mine," Sulu continued. "I'd like to turn it over to Captain Kirk, who's also a bit of an aficionado. Sir?"
Kirk made his way up to the podium, his hand on the old-fashioned military sidearm that was slung across one hip.
"Good evening," he began.
End of 2, more to follow.
Jenkin translates (from Flemish and other languages of the region) to Little John or John the Little. The diminutive nickname of Robert in medieval England was often Robin. Robin Hood, Little John, Friar Tuck, Sheriff of Nottingham, rob from the rich and give to the poor geddit? Even if he *is* a myth (supposedly).
There was such a group in the British army but it was renamed the Notts and Derbyshire Regiment in the 1990's.
Anne Bonny was a feisty female pirate of the old Caribbean, or so legend has it.
Warren Fiskess, a doctor from Boston who interned at St. Eliza's hospital, is a nod to Wayne Fiscus (played by Howie Mandell) of St. Eligus Hospital in Boston, also known as St. Elsewhere. No Squee! alert please, he, like Ensign Jenkin and others, are merely in the story for background color, along with all the weapons mentioned. Besides, a ship as big as the *Enterprise* SHOULD have three doctors (at least!).
Scotty belongs (I presume) to the Scott Clan, which hails from the borders region of Scotland. The clan's ancestral home is Branxholme Castle. The clan motto is indeed "Amo."
Flotsam and Jetsam are Ursula's henchmen in "The Little Mermaid."