nexus_crossings | Family Matters

Family Matters

There's a starship captain in the Plaza, sitting at an outdoor cafe style table which bears a half-consumed cup of coffee and a glowing, transparent datapad. Jim Kirk is not in uniform, clad in well-worn civilian clothes, though given that his shirt says PROPERTY OF STARFLEET ACADEMY in faded text, he's probably not trying to be covert. He's fairly focused on the datapad, and one might assume that he's catching up on reports or requisition forms during his off-hours if not for the quietly contemplative look on his face.

And, of course, the fact that he's chosen to take a break here rather than anywhere near Starfleet property.

His thoughts don't remain a mystery for long, as this does tend to be the place to go for advice, no matter how small the matter. "How's your relationship with your family? Have you ever tried to reconnect after spending years apart?"

There's an empty chair on the other side of the table. Feel free to have a seat, if you'd like.

[OOC: Tags don't seem to work, but dupes are okay!]

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Most interesting, she said. Well, most people find the least humanoid kind of aliens to be fascinating, so he can immediately think of one species that fits the bill. "About fifteen years ago, a Federation mining colony on Janus Six started running across tunnels through solid rock that were too smooth to be naturally formed, and apparently made with corrosive acid. The deeper underground they went, the more tunnels there were, until they stumbled across living rock creatures about this big," he says, using a hand to indicate the height of a small pony, or perhaps a very large dog.

"The miners thought they were some kind of monster, or just really weird animals, but no one had ever encountered silicon-based life, so it got the attention of the scientific community. A small Vulcan science ship came to study them, which was tough since the creatures kept tunneling away whenever anyone got close. One of the scientists used synthesized gemstones to lure one in and mind-melded with it - that's a touch-telepathy thing - and found out they were sentient, and called themselves the Horta. They'd been just as wary of us carbon-based lifeforms since they'd never seen anything like us before, so they were just as surprised to find out we were intelligent."

Thoroughly intrigued, she jotted down some notes.

"I've seen constructs made from stone animated with arcane magic, but I've never heard of such a thing occurring naturally. Considering their ability to spit acid, I'm thankful they were docile... things could have been quite different had they decided to defend their home rather than flee further into the caves."

Jim nods in agreement. "Oh yeah, they could've done a lot of damage. It's a good thing Solkis contacted them when he did; the miners stumbled across a chamber full of Horta eggs not long after, and if they hadn't known what they were, they might've destroyed them. I don't think the Horta would've stayed pacifists if their kids were in danger."

"Indeed, that instinct to protect ones young can be quite a force to be reckoned with. Having been that force before, I should know."

She jots down a few more notes before looking back up at Kirk.

"While we're on the topic of interesting encounters, being an explorer I'm sure you probably have a few questions of your own..."

He shrugs a little. "Sure. Curiosity's what got humanity to explore the stars in the first place. When it comes to people though, it's not always a good idea to pry too much unless they volunteer first. Lots of folks have stuff they don't want to talk about." Himself included, naturally.

"Then consider this an invitation. You gave me some insight into your travels, so it's only fair I do the same."

She stretches her back, looking up into the clear skies above.

"There's not much I wouldn't be willing to talk about. Given the off chance you happen to ask something a bit too prying, I'll let you know and we can simply move on."

There's not much that's specifically caught his attention thus far, but there is one thing that stood out from what she's said so far. "You said you had to disappear for the sake of your daughter?" It should be fairly understandable why a parent's absence would stand out to him at the moment.

"I had a multitude of enemies back in my own world, one of which who was particularly dangerous, and has a long lasting grudge against my family. Had she found out I had a daughter, I'm not sure I'd have been able to keep her safe. Her father died when she was still just a baby due to..."

She pauses for a moment, contemplating as to whether she wanted to divulge the heart wrenching circumstances under which she lost her only love. The tale was depressing enough as is, so she decided to simply gloss over it for now.

"... tragic circumstances. I was all she had, but the closer I was to her, the more danger she would be in. I decided to have my most trusted advisor stage a coup, I faked my own death and left my daughter in her care. This did all eventually come to light, but at least she is old enough to fend for herself, and I did come back to her a little over a decade later. I do hope she's alright, though she's in capable hands, I shouldn't have much to worry about."

Jim frowns a little, picking up on what also wasn't said. "But you still stay away from her, for the most part?"

"If not for having been thrust into this place, I'd be with her now if I could. Now that my enemies know of her, making myself scarce isn't going to help matters. I'm sure she'll be fine until I make it back, but I can't help but worry at times."

Ah. Well. If it's an involuntary separation now, that's more understandable. "Makes sense. I haven't been stopped from going home, but I know others who have."

She gives him a somber nod before giving him a smile.
"I've been trying to keep myself busy, keep my mind off things but I'm still trying to find my place here..."

"Have you been here a while?" There's not much he figures he can do to help her find her door, but he's been learning his way around, so there might be something he could do to direct her towards resources she might need for making a life here.

"Not terribly long, a few months at most. I've taken up residence in an old abandoned manor on what I assume to be the outskirts of town. My two main concerns are making myself useful, and finding some form of sustinence."

She swirls the flask around a bit in front of him.

"My reserves are running a bit low, and I'd rather not have to drink straight from the tap."

She gives Kirk a wide smile, revealing a pair of sharp fangs.

Well, that's... interesting. Jim doesn't flinch or look at her funny, used to dealing with all kinds of species both at home and in the Nexus. He's met witches and gods and dragons, among others. Though with that in mind, he doesn't make any assumptions about what she is - sure, it's possible she's a vampire or something, but she could also be a species he's never met before that just resembles a vampire. And he'd hate to insult her by accident, in any case.

"Nexus apartments won't work for you?" he asks instead, in a reasonable tone of voice.

"I didn't even know such a thing existed. It might be a bit more cramped than what I'm used to, but at least it'll be a bit closer to the square."

She shrugs, taking another sip of her flask.

"I'm honestly more concerned with keeping busy, finding something to keep my mind from wandering to how things were before. I'm sure there must be some way I could be of assistance keeping this place running."

"Honestly, the Nexus seems pretty self-sufficient from what I've seen, but that doesn't mean there isn't something you can do to pitch in somewhere." He gives her a slightly apologetic look. "I've only been coming here for a few months myself, so I'm not sure who you'd wanna talk to about it."

She lets out a sigh, shaking her head.

"I suppose I'll have to find my own niche to fill then... though that does still leave my other issue..."

She looks down at the flask in her hand, deep in thought.

"Your food supply?" he asks. She wasn't explicit about it before, though he can follow the clues just as well as anyone else. But again, he's taking the more diplomatic tactic here. "What is it you need?"

"I need human blood to survive. Granted, I've still some left, it won't last me for too long. Being in new surroundings such as this, going around biting people probably wouldn't be the best option if I wanted to make friends, but I certainly can't ignore the issue forever either..."

She furrows her brow a bit, still trying to come up with some sort of a solution.

All right, so his first guess was correct. This would be a bit easier if Spock was here, or someone else from the Enterprise's science department, but he's pretty sure he's got the general idea of how to start addressing that problem.

"That probably wouldn't work anyway, with the Anti-Violence Field and everything. Does it have to be human?"

"Anti-what-field?"
Since she hadn't gotten desperate enough to try, she wasn't even aware there was such a thing. As for his next point.

"It would have to be human, or at least from something human enough, and not undead."

A little odd that she doesn't know, but perhaps there wasn't a brochure stand near her entrance into the Nexus. After all, this place is infinite, so the odds make it more than possible she simply missed it. "It's some kind of magical property of the Nexus, I think. Stops people from attacking each other at will, although it's stronger some places than others, and it can be flexible if both people agree to fight, like if you wanted to spar." He's not going to mention that apparently it's been disabled before - the less people who know that, the less likely it is that someone will seek out a way to do it again.

Jim gives that a moment of thought. "I'm not sure if there are hospitals here, but there's probably one somewhere, and they'd probably have a supply for transfusions. Might be worth checking out."

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Family Matters

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