A New Family

Posted on Sun Aug 22nd, 2021 @ 1:16pm by Lieutenant Mila Lynn & Uhlan Ezra Perez & Major Ashley Rogers & Sublieutenant Renee Hernandez

3,654 words; about a 18 minute read

Mission: Chapter IV: Unravelling the Mystery
Location: Mess Hall, I.R.W. Ourainavassa
Timeline: 238702.22

Perez looked around the room. They had been assigned small junior officers' accomodation, which amounted to a single room, with a bed in one corner, a small desk and chair, a locker, and a replicator in the corner. On one side was a door to the bathroom they shared with the occupant of the neighbouring room, an Orion technician called Sari, although they hadn't met them yet. On the desk was a plain computer access console, but besides that, the room was entirely undecorated. The first thing Perez had done was to change the lighting in the room from the Romulan standard greenish hue to a more natural light, before proceeding to unpack their duffel bag.

Despite no longer being part of the Terran Imperial Starfleet, the quartermaster of the Amelia had allowed Perez to keep some of their uniforms, so the locker was quickly filled with three simple, black combat jumpsuits with a bronze stripe running down the side, as well as a duty uniform and a dress uniform, their division colour equally bronze to denote Perez' previous service in the Imperial MACO division. Perez had two sets of duty uniform, but of course was currently wearing one of them. With the clothing stored, Perez turned their attention to the small selection of personal items in the bag. There was, of course, Lucy, and the huge greatsword went into the locker next to the uniforms. Then, there were two PADDs, one holding a small library worth of books and vids, and the other reserved for more professional use. Finally, Perez lifted a small case out of the bag and placed it on the desk.

The former Sergeant smiled wistfully as they clicked open the case, revealing an assortment of shiny medals awarded for various achievements in battle, as well as two bronze badges, one showing the badge of the Imperial Starfleet - a dagger impaling an image of Earth, on an inverted arrowhead - the other the four chevrons of a MACO Sergeant Major. While in Perez' time, tricom badges had supplanted these old identification badges, and MACO rank was usually sown onto the sleeve, these metal badges were awarded at promotions, and worn on dress uniforms.

Carefully, they lifted the Starfleet badge out of the case and turned it over. "PEREZ, Ezra. MCS6654 2803ZP". They ran a finger along the service details engraved into the back of the badge, before placing it back in the case. That life was over. Now, things were going to be different. With a smile, Perez opened the other, small black box on the desk, revealing a badge of a single, black crescent with a bronze outline. The rank insignia of a Tal Shiar Uhlan. Although the Ourainavassa had cut ties with the Tal Shiar, they continued to use their insignia. In addition to denoting rank, the badges also served as combadges. Perez took a deep breath and pinned the badge to the left side of their collar. Time for a new life to begin.

Since picking up a few more crewmembers, Major Ashley Rogers has been making an effort to personally welcome them on board. Perez, she already met, so it would be good to make sure they are getting settled in. When she got to their quarters, she rang the chime and called out jokingly, "I know you're in there, Renee doesn't serve alcohol this early..."

The chime ripped Perez from their musings. A new crewmate come to introduce themselves? No, they realised when the voice called out, it was just Rogers. Probably coming to check in if they'd settled in yet. Or a room inspection. Either way, nothing wrong with looking right, Perez mused. "One moment, I'm in the bathroom," they called out, and promptly headed straight there to take a look in the mirror. A youthful, almost childlike face with piercing blue eyes stared back. They quickly attempted to sort out the mess of bright white hair on their head before giving up, straightening the uniform jacket and heading over to the door.

Almost out of long-trained reflex, Perez stood to attention when the door opened. "Ser- ahm, Uhlan Ezra Perez, reporting for inspection, Com- I mean, Major," they stammered, before weakly smiling at the Major. Way to ruin a first impression, Perez.

Ash furrowed her brow in confusion but decided to mess with the newcomer, "Is that how you would greet your superiors on your old ship? Was the Commander that much of a pushover to work with someone that can't remember their own rank? And who gave you permission to change the lighting in your quarters? We operate a tight ship here, you think we chose our standard lighting for fun? It's the most efficient use of resources. And you think that grows on trees, Uhlan?" Before Perez could respond, Ash continued, "Come with me."

Leading the new officer silently through the ship, without dropping her pissed off demeanor, they arrived at the Mess Hall and Renee greeted the pair with a smile, "Welcome to the Mess Hall, take a seat..." She noticed Ash's face and a subtle wink and resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Of course she was messing with a newcomer, "...at the counter."

"Thank you Renee," Ash said before nudging Perez. "Now introduce yourself, Uhlan."

While the Major's behaviour had certainly them aback, and they were wondering if it wasn't actually the Commander pulling some sort of elaborate prank, Perez immediately slipped back into their old Terran persona and stood at attention. "Uhlan Ezra Perez, ma'am, formerly of the Imperial Starfleet of the Terran Empire, formerly commander of the MACO detachment of I.S.S. Amelia. Resigned from Imperial service and now a member of the crew of this fine vessel, ma'am. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, ma'am."

Renee resisted the urge to chuckle as she looked over at Ash. Ash smiled for the first time as she slapped Perez on the shoulder, "I'm kidding. You can have whatever lighting you want in your quarters. I just wanted to get to know you better. This is Renee, the head chef and from what I understand, the new quartermaster. Congratulations on the promotion."

Renee smiled at the both of them and finally rolled her eyes, "Thank you, Major. Now what can I get for both of you?"

Ash smiled wider, "A bowl of stew for Perez and a burger for me."

Perez rolled their eyes. "I should have known you were up to something. Oh, and I could I have a burger, actually? I've been told to avoid the stew."

Renee actually let out a laugh, "You're not as slick as you think, Ash." She then looked at Perez, "There's nothing actually wrong with the stew... except for the fact that Commander Ash Rogers made it." Renee then looked at Ash, "And she isn't inept in the kitchen."

Ash looked insulted, "Ouch. Perez, here has barely been on board and already you've insulted me twice in front of them."

Renee smirked as she threw a dish towel at Ash before heading into the kitchen to start on their food, "Third time's the charm..."

Ash grumbled and explained, "So.... she's my ex...."

Perez chuckled. "Seemed to me more like the bickering of an old married couple, really. So much for running a tight ship, eh? I am getting good vibes from this crew so far, though. And I know what you guys can do in a fight, seen it first hand after all. Definitely wouldn't want to be on the receiving end."

"Never married," Ash clarified slightly wistfully. "I kinda messed that part up..." She shook her head and changed the topic, "We can be a pain in Raven's ass. But we're good people, trying to do good things... many of us with enough baggage to fill the cargo hold. Probably different than the Terran way of doing of things?"

Perez replied with a hollow laugh. "You can say that again. Obey your superiors, leave your personality at the door of the academy when you join. Promotion through back-stabbing. I often felt that my own subordinates were more dangerous to me than any enemy we could have faced. Luckily, Captain Mannerheim ran her ship in a very Federation way, even before we crossed over to this universe. Annoyed the hell out of a few people who tried the old way and found themselves in an agonizer for their troubles. Or worse, if they got her or the Commander in a bad mood."

Ash chuckled, "Well... personality is pretty abundant here. Maybe not in Starfleet, but here... we're not beholden to anyone. Granted some of the Romulans are still pretty straight laced..." She then turned to Perez, "So... that Commander of your's.... she drives me nuts. You know her and you've worked with me. Are we actually the same person in different uniforms? And answer truthfully, I'll only kill you if you bullshit me."

Perez considered the question before replying. "Honestly, I don't know you well enough yet to give you a good answer to that question. What I can tell you about the Commander is that she is as straightforward as a Terran gets. I doubt you'd still be able to ask me that question if you had really gotten onto her bad side. She doesn't take shit from anyone, and she doesn't give two flying fucks about what her superiors tell her if it forces her to work with people she does not want to work with. She's been through a lot, but then, who gets to her rank in Starfleet without going through hell. At least in our universe, anyway." They looked around. "My throat's rather sticky. Mind if I pop over to the replicator and get something to drink?"

Renee came back and said, "What can I get you? Your burgers are cooking right now. And it's actually pretty disconcerting how similar the two are... and it's probably why she annoys the hell out of you, Major. Because she's you...." she smiles innocently.

The Uhlan giggled. "Good point. I'll take some green tea with a bit of lemon, please. Japanese-style." They looked around the mess hall again, and spotted a few people wearing familiar-looking badges on their clothing. "Wait, are those-"

"Yep, tricom badges." Mila walked up to Ash and Perez and sat down on the chair next to the new recruit. "When your chief science officer, Greaves, came by to visit a while back, she left one behind. I've been busy reverse engineering them ever since. So far, all they are is combadges with enhanced range and a transporter beacon, but I'm working on adding the holographic PADD as well." She reached into her pocket and pulled out two badges, in plain silver, with the phoenix motif of the Ourainavassa's crest engraved on them. "Here you are."

Lieutenant Lynn turned to Renee. "Oh, quartermaster, just the person I was after. We should have enough of those badges manufactured by the end of the week to kit out the whole crew. And in your position as chef, do you still have some of that Japanese curry from last night? If so, I'll take some, and an iced coffee."

Renee smiled, "Of course, I'll bring the tea and the coffee right out." She went back to the kitchen to retrieve the beverages.

Ash looked over at Mila, clearly impressed, "When did you have time to do that?!"

Mila chuckled. "You think I spent the ride back with that freezer full of Romulans doing nothing? Besides, I'd started working on it the moment I got my hands on the thing. And when I had the time and the facilities on the Bedford, I made a working prototype. One that can be replicated. So I've now got the replicators in the lab and the armory churning out combadges. Should be a bit more convenient than using those tiny rank badges, no? Especially since those barely have any range. These new ones, though? Haven't figured out how to shrink a subspace transmitter down to fit yet, but it'll go as far as it can without one of those. I reckon..." She paused as she did the calculation in her head. "You could probably use one of these to send a signal from Earth to Luna. With the associated delay, as the signal only travels at light speed, of course."

Ash raised an eyebrow, impressed, "I suppose you are a genius after all..."

Renee returned with two burgers and leftover curry, along with everyone's drinks, "So how much did replicating all of that cost us?"

Mila shrugged. "I don't know and don't really care. The boss told me to do it, and she said she's in charge of finances now anyway."

Perez, who had remained silent throughout the short discussion of the badges, could not help but be impressed. "So," they finally said, after thanking Renee for the food. "You took a tricom badge, took it apart, and figured out how to build one of your own, without need for any schematics or anything? In a matter of weeks? Yeah, you are a genius alright."

Ash smiled at Mila, clearly proud, "Glad you work for us..." Then she whispered conspiratorially with a smirk, "You're my favorite, don't tell your brother that..."

Renee rolled her eyes again, "Don't listen to her, she told Miles that he was her favorite last week."

Ash sighed, "What did I ever do to you? Wait... don't answer that."

Renee chuckled as she started wiping down the counter, "Oh and your burger had some of the stew in it. You're welcome."

Mila burst out laughing and looked at Perez, who wasn't sure how to react. "Don't worry, Perez. These two are always like that. Adds to the charm of the place." She eagerly took a spoonful of the curry. "Okay, this is even better than it was yesterday."

Perez shrugged. "If you say so. It's very different to an Imperial ship here, that much is certain." They took a sip from the tea. "Oh wow. This really is good stuff." They glanced at Mila, who was wolfing down her curry as if she hadn't eaten in days. "That katsukare looks really good, too. If I'd known you had Japanese food, that's definitely what I would have gone for. Not to say that the burger isn't excellent, but I do like a taste of home, you know."

Renee smiled, "I have many skills and specialties, never hesitate to just ask for something. The worse I can do is serve you reheated stew."

"Looks like you're going to like it here, Ezra," Ash said patting Perez on the shoulder.

Perez froze. "Don't ever call me that name again," they hissed. "Ezra is dead."

Mila looked at them, puzzled. [What are they talking about?], she quickly signed to Ash.

Before the Major could respond, Perez chuckled. "What am I talking about? Hah, didn't think I knew sign, did you. There are many things about me nobody knows. Nobody will ever know. But I will tell you this much. Ezra Perez was the name of the son of the Professor who saved my life. I took his name to hide my own survival. But I am not, and will never be, Ezra. So don't call me that."

Ash's eyes widened, uncertain of what social landmine she just stepped on. She looked over at Renee, who was equally as confused.

Mila slowly nodded. "Okay. Just Perez, then. What did you mean by 'a taste of home', by the way?"

Perez looked at the scraps of curry in Mila's bowl. "As you now know, Perez isn't my real name. I don't really look like a Perez, either. No, I'm originally from Japan. Small town near Osaka."

"I had no idea..." Ash started. "I'm sorry..."

Renee then spoke up, "So what was the name you had before Perez?"

Perez shook their head. "That name... the person that had that name, is just as dead as the original Ezra Perez." They tapped their badge and made an outward movement with their hand, before chuckling. "Oh, yeah. No PADD. Force of habit."

With a shrug, they pulled out a compact PADD from their pocket, and after a few taps, put it down on the counter. "I haven't even looked at this photo in years. Let alone showed it to anyone." The photo showed three people, all dressed in elegant, deep red and gold kimonos, standing in front of a traditional-looking teahouse. The only thing breaking the illusion were the two big red banners next to the door, showing the insignia of the Terran Empire. The two adults were obviously Japanese in appearance, and looked to be in their mid-thirties. They were flanking a young girl, no older than three or four, who had her jet black hair done up in an elegant topknot and was showing a beaming smile full of excitement.

"That was my parents' proudest day," Perez recounted, their voice full of sadness. "Our little teahouse in Osaka was to be visited by the Emperor himself. That's why we are all dressed up in our best."

Mila leaned over and took a look at the photo. "You look like such a happy little family there," she observed, before looking at the sign above the teahouse door. "The... Nakai? Sorry, my Japanese isn't as good, and reading kanji has always been hard."

A single tear rolled down Perez' cheek. "Nakai Hanako," they said, pointing at their mother. "Nakai Kenji. And... me. Nakai Shizune. We were happy. The Empire is a harsh world to live in, but my parents had done well for themselves. The teahouse had been in my dad's family for generations. It was originally called the Shanghai, but my grandfather changed the name to that of the family. We didn't have much, but what we had was good. There was a school for the gifted on a nearby hill, and the students there were our most regular customers. The Emperor had studied there himself, and one day he decided to visit the school and our teahouse, for the memories. We lived above the shop, a modest little apartment, but it was good enough for us. The Imperial visit had gotten us famous all over the place, and for the next three months, it was always crammed. We had more customers in those three months than we'd had in years, my dad told me."

By now, Perez was crying. "Everything was perfect. And then, one night, it all went up in flames. I was staying with my mother's parents that night, not far away. It was the day before my birthday, and my parents wanted me out of the way because they were planning a surprise. During the night, the teahouse burned. My grandparents had gone to help my parents while I was in bed. None of them survived. I ended up in an orphanage. That was where Professor Perez found me, and took me into the programme. I had had some DNA therapy in the past, and they said it was for more of that. Of course, it wasn't."

Mila turned to Perez and simply hugged them. "You are not dead, Shizune," she whispered in their ear. "Thank you for telling us."

After a moment, Perez calmed down, and Mila let go. Wiping their eyes, they shook their head. "The Professor is the only one who knows this story. And now, you do, too. But, please. Just keep calling me Perez. That old name, it has too many memories. Too much pain. Maybe one day I'll change my name back. But for now, I'm just Perez. Not Ezra, not Shizune, just that. Perez."

"Perez it is then," Renee said. "If you ever have a craving for a taste of home, I'm more than willing to whip you up something. And if you are up to it and you have recipes you want to share, I'm willing to try."

Ash looked over at Mila and raised an eyebrow at the hug she gave Perez before speaking, "Welcome to the Ourainavassa. Hopefully, you can create new good memories here while honoring the old ones."

Perez smiled. "Thank you. Honestly, I have no idea what came over me. But..." They turned to Renee. "I was only four when the teahouse burned, but one of the things I still have is a collection of recipes. It would be a waste not to see them used, and since I am a useless cook, I think you would be far more suited as a custodian."

"I would be honored to be able to try to make those recipes," Renee said.

They looked over at Ash and Mila. "Don't know about you, but I need a drink."

Mila made sure to lean behind Perez, so they couldn't see her, and signed. [Seems you adopted another stray, eh? You're growing quite the family.]

Ash blushed and sighed.

Renee looked at Ash and Mila and smiled. As much as she still had conflicted feelings about her ex, she can't help but notice that the woman in front of her now is a much healthier version than the one she knew before.

Perez noticed Mila leaning behind them, and nudged her in the shoulder. [Talking behind my back, are we? No fair.]

Mila cursed. "Ah damnit. I'm so used to being able to use sign as a way to talk to Ash and my brother in private. Sorry."

"Oh don't worry about it," Perez replied with a sly smile. "Now you have someone else to do it with."

"Yeah, that's one way to look at it I guess." Mila looked at Renee. "Get us some drinks. We've got to celebrate Perez here finding their new family."

RSS Feed