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Day 02 [1600 hrs.] Of Serendipity and Vicissitude

Day 02 [1600 hrs.] Of Serendipity and Vicissitude

[ Deacon | Main Sickbay | Recovery Room | Deck 11 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @SummerDawn

The lights in the room were subdued, suitably dim for the one recovering within.  The doctor had insisted on some additional rest before discharge, at the very least to help minimize a series of muscles tremors that had afflicted him since the conclusion of surgery.  Plus, he wished to be certain that there were no lingering affects from the viral agent that had assaulted his patient in the first place.  To ensure that any protest might be otherwise rendered moot, he'd administered a muscle relaxant and a mild sedative.

The door to the recovery room slid opened revealing three shadows that quickly slipped inside. 

"This is him?  This is the kzinti?" one asked, a bolian male, his blue features standing in stark contrast to the gold of his uniform.

"Yes.  Nicander performed surgery on him, just like on the great Sarresh.  Made him more human," a diminutive female responded, accessing the medical read outs to show the others.

"By the prophets," another male spoke, "do you think he plans to do it to everyone?"

The female shook her head. "He claims it was the result of the virus.  But no one else has had to undergo such a radical treatment.  Personally, I think it was just an excuse to continue his butchery.  But you two are going to make sure that this is one experiment that never sees the light of day."

"I'm still not sure that killing an innocent..." the bolian began.

"He isn't innocent.  He already interfered with our efforts last night.  Besides, he's kzinti... who's going to miss him?  They're enemies of the Federation anyway," the bajoran spat.

"And we need a way to discredit Nicander.  I've heard rumors that he's already on a knife's edge with Ives.  This might be enough to have him relieved of duty... maybe even tossed in the brig," the female added.  "Here, these hyposprays will weaken the arterial walls in the hearts and brain.  Apply the first, wait two minutes and then apply the second," she stated, indicating the two points for each injection.  "I have to get back to sickbay before I'm missed."

The males nodded as the female slipped through the door, the blue of her uniform accented by the light in the hall.

The bajoran looked at the hypospray he'd been handed and nervously placed it against the silvery fur of the kzin's neck until the familiar hiss confirmed that the contents had discharged.  With a faint exhale of relief, he turned his gaze to the bolian who stood ready to administer the second dosage as he counted down the seconds to do so.

Golden eyes opened, inexplicably roused, prompting a series of curse words under the bajoran's breath.  The bolian looked down in shock as the kzin turned his head to take in the scene around him.  "Who...?" the patient began, feeling the weight of his tongue, the lingering effects of the sedative and muscle relaxant still conspiring to keep him from any meaningful action.

"Give him the other shot," the bajoran hissed.

"It hasn't even been half a minute," the bolian retorted, a hint of panic in his tone as he studied the massive form of the kzin for some reasonable method of approach even as he struggled to rise from the bio bed.

The bajoran slammed his hands against the patient's massive arms, pinning them down with little resistance to give the bolian a better opportunity only to find the kzin's tail had wrapped tightly about the smaller man's neck.  "Who are..." the kzin tried again to ask, the words getting tangled somewhere between his bared fangs and the length of his tongue.  Instinct was the sole driver that spurred him now, his ziirgah warning him of the murderous intent of those around him.

Re: Chapter XX: Of Serendipity and Vicissitude | Day 02 [1600 hrs.]

Reply #1 –
[ Ens. K'Ren | Main Sickbay | Recovery Room | Deck 11 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @steelphoenix
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Almost right on time K'Ren had come to sickbay for her checkup. She was basically mended as far as she knew, just needing a checkup to give her a clean bill of health and release to the general population. So it was around 1600 on a bio bed that she sat, a diminutive human nurse running some scans over her, checking the injuries were properly healing. Diminutive was relative as K'Ren herself only came in at a short 5ft 5in, and 115lbs. She smiled at the nurse, "Doc did a good job on my injuries?" K'Ren asked.

"Certainly Ensign. Your healing nicely," She glanced up briefly, seeing doors open and three men step in, moving out of K'Ren's line of sight. "There is one thing I should grab before we continue. If you'll excuse me." The nurse remarked, before scooting out the door without another word.

K'Ren's ear's swiveled as she heard the men come in but didn't think much of it as sickbay was expected to get random people at random hours. And the nurse seemed a bit stressed, probably the result of overwork the past few days, K'Ren figured. When the women came back she seemed a bit agitated. "Everything okay?" K'Ren asked.

"Fine. Yeah. Just a bit crazy here the last day, we weren't expecting such a large influx f patients, well not another ship load worth. She popped the vial in the hypo, glancing at it, realizing it was the wrong one. "I was going to give you a vitamin booster but I seem to have grabbed the wrong stuff. She glanced at the bar code, smiling a little unsurely. "You probably don't want the antidote to the contraceptive shot." She said, chuckling a bit nervously. "Let's skip that for now and maybe get it when you come in next? Your otherwise in good health and fit to join the rest of the population.

K'Ren nodded, "Thank you. Your probably busy so I'll let you get back to your next patient." K'Ren remarked, hopping off the bed. She decided to go via the aft entrance, the same way she'd left last time. As fate would have it, as she passed a recovery ward, she picked up on the sounds of voices and a scuffle inside. Why that would be coming from a recovery ward she didn't know, and curiosity getting the better of her, K'Ren keyed open the door.

Only to be greeted by the sight of two men, one pinning Deacon's hands down while what looked a tail was wrapped around the other. The second appeared to be going for a hypo and while at first glance this could be just two nurses trying to restrain a patient, the uniform colors for all wrong for medical or security and K'Ren realized what she'd stumbled upon.

Clenching her fists, opening them as her claws extended out a good half inch. K'Ren hissed, stepping into the room and with a speed only cats could muster, closed the gap between her and the bolian man, swatting the vial from his hand, sending it clattering to the floor across the recovery room. The Bajoran turned as she growled, her claws sinking into the back of his head, mustering enough strength to slam his head against the side of the bio bed, knocking him unconscious, leaving the bolian being strangled by the patient's tail..

Re: Chapter 45: Of Serendipity and Vicissitude | Day 02 [1600 hrs.]

Reply #2 –
[ Deacon | Main Sickbay | Recovery Room | Deck 11 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @SummerDawn

Everything was a haze for Deacon.  His vision was still blurry and his limbs still felt like foreign attachments that only reluctantly obeyed his commands, but these were not afflictions similarly held by his attackers.  Why did he have attackers?  Was this the doctor's method of making up for the lack of barbarism in his surgery?  Was there some sort of time limit that he'd exceeded while sleeping?  All he knew was that his ziirgah warned him of eminent danger.  These men wanted him dead.  Certainly, death while incapacitated was the least of what he deserved as a traitor to his people, but who were these two to enact the will of the Patriarch?

He'd managed to grab one by the neck with his tail, but it proved only the faintest of hindrances, only capable of slowing the man's movements rather than bring him to his knees for lack of breath.  The sedative was still too prominent in his system that it could take minutes of sustained effort for his body to shake its effects, and he doubted he would be afforded such an opportunity.

The door opened and he half expected another assailant to enter.  A female stood in the opening, her form shadowed against the light of the hall behind her.  She moved with a fluidity that Deacon hadn't seen since homeworld, a hiss slipping through her teeth as she charged the man who was restraining him, grabbing him by the back of the head with one hand as she slapped a hypospray from the bolian's grip with the other.  With barely a sound of protest, the bajoran's head collided solidly with the edge of the biobed and he collapsed from the newcomer's grip.

Deacon could only rely on instinct.  He would rationalize the situation later.  He had to act.  With his tail still wrapped solidly around the bolian's throat, Deacon shifted his weight to the opposite side of the biobed where the bajoran had fallen, and with a spin, sent himself to the ground knowing that where he might lack the strength, no sedative could offset his weight.  Caught off guard, the bolian's head was slammed into the bed with a snap, sending him to the floor unconscious as Deacon's tail unwound from his neck.

He lay on the floor, tangled over the bory of the bajoran as he struggled to find a place to plant his hands in order to climb to his feet, uncertain of the intent of the female as he tried to make her out in the subdued light, his golden eyes only now beginning to adapt to the pattern of shadows in the room.

Re: Chapter 45: Of Serendipity and Vicissitude | Day 02 [1600 hrs.]

Reply #3 –
[ Ens. K'Ren | Main Sickbay | Recovery Room | Deck 11 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @steelphoenix
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Whereas Deacon's senses may have been dulled by the sedatives, K'Ren's were not and she was able to make out the forms of the three people on the ground, two in an obvious state of unconsciousness, she'd heard both cracks as their respective heads contacted hard metal, rendering them both out. The third, the apparent victim in this case sat tangled in the bodies, struggling to get up from what she could tell, most likely some sort of sedative still wearing off from surgery, much as hers had the day before.

Senses tuned for more agressors, K'Ren's mind began to play through the lead up to this attack. She recalled three men who came into sickbay, two now lay at her feet, and the nurse who seemed a bit stressed and disappeared soon after their arrival. Pieces began to fall into place in her mind and the whereabouts of the third concerned her, if he'd heard the scuffle, he might have a weapon, the nurse might be in on everything. All of it pointed to a conspiracy against this man and right now K'Ren had little time to think about who or what the man was.

She offered a hand to the man, feeling his firm tho unsteady grasp as he got to his feet. "We need to go, find a safe place to hide you until security can step in." She glanced over at him, as she paused to see if he was steady. He looked distinctly feline but like her apparently part human, the softened facial lines and human like furr that covered him hiding her alien heritage somewhat. She could also pick up a distinct scent but part human, it was hard to make it out as to species but it was vaguely familiar, something she'd smelled once or twice growing up.

Re: Chapter 45: Of Serendipity and Vicissitude | Day 02 [1600 hrs.]

Reply #4 –
[ Deacon | Hallway | Deck 11 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @SummerDawn

The minutes moved by in disjointed images as his mind worked against the sedative.  The attackers, he was certain they had been dispatched.  A female had taken one and he'd roused enough conscious effort out of his own body to handle the second.  Now they were in a hallway staggering away from the sickbay as the smaller female was forced to bear much of the weight from his unresponsive body.  He paused, standing to his full height uneasily, looking back over his shoulder at where they had come from, clad in little more than a pair of underwear that he'd worn to bed the night before.  The awkward angle of his gaze threatened to upset his balance as he turned his golden eyes back towards the female.

"You... you're kinda small," he said, tilting his head, still working to make sense of what was going on through the haze in his head.  She had a pleasant scent and even through the sense of panic and urgency that his empathy read from her, she'd been very helpful and that made him feel comforted, a vague sense of another female hovering over him, fussing over his safety.

He leaned forward onto her again as she continued to guide him down the hallway.  "Doctor... said I should rest."  He shook his head, his dusky baritone caught between faintly detached amusement and complaint.  "This isn't rest."

Where was she taking him?  She said something about finding someplace safe, at least he thought she'd said something.  Had she said something?  He couldn't remember.  But she was female, females didn't speak.  Well, monkey females spoke, but this one was no monkey.

Leaning forward, he laid his ears back, eyes half-lidded, his tail swinging lazily behind him.  She certainly smelled nice.  "Never met a kzinrett like you," he said.

Re: Chapter 45: Of Serendipity and Vicissitude | Day 02 [1600 hrs.]

Reply #5 –
[ Ens. K'Ren | Hallways | Deck 11 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @steelphoenix 
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'Kzinrett', the one word no caitian female liked to hear. To the peace loving caitians, the Kzin were brutish uncivilized thugs who sullied the idea of what it meant to be a sentient predator, but especially one of the feline races. And Kzinrett was the worst term that could be bestowed upon a female of her species. Nothing more then breeding slaves, the Kzinrett represented evrything wrong with the Kzin and she hissed as he used the term.  It explained a lot, his strange scent, the large build for a human, the prehensile tail, and here she was supporting the weight of this half-breed brute after saving his life from something.

"KZin," she hissed, half spitting as she guided him unsteadily towards the turbolift. Her quarters were a deck above and probably the safest place for him given his assailants probably wouldn't expect a Cait to harbor a Kzin, but that meant letting a brute, half-breed though he was into her private space. Perhaps though his apparent human side had tempered him somewhat though she wondered how in the universe a Kzin and a human could find themselves breeding, at least breeding willingly, and how such a hybrid could survive.

Apparently though many of her questions would be answered, and as she guided his still stumbling and semi-concious form the rest of the way to her quarters, she had time to ponder this man. His mother couldn't be human as no female would submit, at least not willingly, to a male Kzin which suggested that his father was Human but the kzinrett never left their homeworld so how did a human end up breeding a kzinrett. When the drugs wore off she would find out.

Getting him to her quarters, K'Ren keyed in her code, guiding him inside while glancing down the halls, ears perked, tail twitching as she expected more to suddenly appear. Thankfully none appeared and as she locked the door behind her, she could shed this beast and she plopped him on the floor, sitting upright but not offering him the curtesy of her couch.

Squatting beside him, K'Ren looked into the man's eyes, teeth bared. "Call me a kzinrett again and I will leave you bereft of your sight and hearing before leaving you to them," she remarked. "Now who are you and why should I care about a Kzin half-breed who's too weak to fend off his enemies?"

Re: Chapter 45: Of Serendipity and Vicissitude | Day 02 [1600 hrs.]

Reply #6 –
[ Deacon | K'Ren's Quarters | Deck 10 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @SummerDawn

He rolled over from his position on the ground, shaking his head.  Something had upset the female.  Had he said something?  It was all still a blur.  Wasn't he supposed to be in sickbay?  A moment later, she was in front of him again, teeth bared.  "Call me a kzinrett again and I will leave you bereft of your sight and hearing before leaving you to them.  Now who are you and why should I care about a Kzin half-breed who's too weak to fend off his enemies?"

Not a kzinrett?  But the fur, the tail... ok the ears were a little off and she was certainly small for a kzinti.  He rubbed at his eyes, what sense having been restored to him in the walk from sickbay raging in protest against the medications still in his system.  "Hate being drugged," he mumbled, though the slur in his speech had improved considerably.  He held up a hand to fend off the burning irritation he felt emanating from her.  Blinking his eyes, he shook his head vigorously, the golden stare finally seeming to affix on her properly.

He tilted his head slightly, shifting his gaze to her ears, the faint differences that only a fellow felinoid could distinguish.  "Caitian?" he asked, more to himself than her.  Turning his attention to the room around them and then his own condition on the ground, he narrowed one eyelid slightly wondering exactly what was going on.  With one hand, he straightened out the black mane of hair that crowned his head, settling on the scruff at the back of his neck that he kneaded as if loosening a tight muscle.

"The doctor told me I needed to rest and recover from surgery."  He held out both hands and looked at them as if expecting them to leap off and run around the room on their own.  "I woke up with those two trying to kill me."

Nothing on this ship made sense.  He'd seen the crew members dueling in the halls without any sense of honor, others conspired to murder patients in their beds, and the ship itself was being hunted by the entirety of the Federation, if not more.  Everything was upside down.  "I need to speak to the Patria..." he shook his head, correcting himself, "the captain."  He attempted to rise only to find his legs had not yet roused sufficiently to cooperate with such an endeavor. 

He looked towards the ceiling.  "Is this comedy, Fanged God?"

With a sigh, he shifted himself to a slightly more comfortable position and, clearing his throat, looked once more at K'Ren only to avoid her gaze as he spoke.  "Thank you for saving my life," he said, awkwardly, perhaps a bit belated, but sincerely.  "My name is Deacon."

Re: Chapter 45: Of Serendipity and Vicissitude | Day 02 [1600 hrs.]

Reply #7 –
[ Ens. K'Ren | K'Ren's Quarters | Deck 10 | Vector 2 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @steelphoenix 
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K'Ren had to give that one to the man, she'd recently been drugged herself and for a species that had such a finely tuned sense of balance and sense, she hated the feeling of being constantly off balance and her senses dulled. She watched him, body a bit tense, claws extened, ready in case he should try something stupid like attacking her. "Yes. Caitian." she remarked coolly, "Not some sub-sapient Kzin female you may had bred at some point." She hated the term kzinrett, even if it was the correct term for their females she could not bring herself to demean a female in such a way, despite what the male KZin might think.

"Right now you are in no position to speak to anyone," she remarked, still watching him carefully. "There was another accomplice I saw before I came upon you and I don't know who they were. For now you remain here." She paused as he thanked her for saving him, giving her his name. She cautiously retracted her claws, the man couldn't get far if he tried anything and the people that wanted him dead would most likely find him in the end anyways. She didn't offer her hand but slowly unbared her teeth. "K'Ren. You are welcome Deacon."

She looked at him in the awkward silence, really looked at him. She could see he was certainly part human, part KZin, though she wondered how such a union could happen, not the biological aspects so much as the social and romantic aspects. KZin & Human were not exactly evenly matched on so many levels physically. Finely she spoke, "We are going to be here a while so you might as well tell me about yourself Deacon. I have never seen the offspring of KZin and human, yet you sit here before me."

Re: Chapter 45: Of Serendipity and Vicissitude | Day 02 [1600 hrs.]

Reply #8 –
[ Deacon | K'Ren's Quarters | Deck 10 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @SummerDawn

"Tell you about myself?" 

On one level, he assumed that he would have to get used to explaining his heritage.  It was, as she had said, quite uncommon.  Truth be told, he was unaware of any other kzin hybrids, let alone kzin-human hybrids.  He may well be unique.  And while that might well make a remarkable expose and case study in the interpersonal relations of humans and kzinti, he was somewhat incensed at the presumption that he should just disclose his life history to anyone who happens to kidnap him out of sickbay, whether they'd saved his life or not.

The hostility was there.  Sheathed claws and hidden fangs aside, he could still feel it smoldering, and to tell him he was in no position to speak to anyone...?  That had all the implications that he was somehow her prisoner.  Where he in full control of his limbs, this wouldn't even be a matter of debate, but for the moment he had to concede that she held the upper hand.  Ironic that on a ship full of monkeys, it was another felinoid that seemed to be the threat.

Another thought stood out, however.  "Not some sub-sapient kzin female I may have bred...?" he repeated under his breath as he considered her words.  He tilted his head, not caring at all for the insinuation that he would attempt to mate above his station, that he would assume the rights of a name he hadn't earned, or worse, violate the harem of a superior. 

Was this female going out of her way to antagonize him?  This wasn't how he imagined having to spend his day recovering.

Besides, where exactly was she expecting him to begin?  He took a deep breath and considered.  Random disclosure was out of the question.  It wasn't how he was trained.  And maintaining his own ignorance simply perpetuated the current circumstance.  There was only one solution.  "I will tell you something about me, and then you will tell me something about you," he stated, doing his utmost to maintain an even tone.

"My mother was... kzinrett," he paused, stressing the word in such a way to demonstrate that it was simply a term, not an insult, "and my father was human.... Starfleet."  His eyes pinched slightly as he struggled to recall what few details he could of his childhood, things long buried for the sake of survival among the kzinti.  "He... he rescued her from a crashed ship, I think.  I don't remember much," he added, shaking his head as the memories failed to materialize, the final admission more raw than intended, "They both died when I as six."

Re: Chapter 45: Of Serendipity and Vicissitude | Day 02 [1600 hrs.]

Reply #9 –
[ Ens. K'Ren | K'Ren's Quarters | Deck 10 | Vector 2 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @steelphoenix
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K'Ren watched him somewhat intently as he explained his heritage, his mother being rescued by his father, a Starfleet officer, and their death at the young age of six. It was a story she'd heard before amongst the young of the world she grew up in, part of the twisted cycle of life away from the heart of the Federation core worlds. The one thought that echo'd to her was that this man, the hybrid like her didn't deserve her dislike. He'd done nothing to her to earn fangs and claws, he was as much a young man adrift in space as she was, pulled along for a ride he'd never asked for.

Softening a little, trying not to let her dislike of K'Zin cloud her attitude, K'Ren paused after he told her who he was. "My mother was, is, Caitian. I never knew knew my father." K'Ren admitted. "Mother was a prostitute on a mining colony, a low station in life by any standard. My sire, well. he was killed by an Orion thug. Mom said he was the only one who truely cared for her, the only one she gave herself to, and myself and my sister are the result of that choice."

She paused, "You do not deserve my hatred Deacon. KZin were feared and hated on my world for the raids they made, preying on innocent ships. For a cub growing up, such attitudes become routine and accepted. My mother was often called a kzinrett, forced to fight off drunk men who'd suffered at the hands of your mother's kind. That is why I hate the word, my mother was no kzinrett."

She sat back, claws fully retracted now, teeth fully covered as her face softened, becoming one more of care. She also felt a kernel of something else, something she couldn't explain, a desire and urge she'd not felt in some time. "So why were you in surgery and how did you come to be aboard this vessel?"

Re: Chapter 45: Of Serendipity and Vicissitude | Day 02 [1600 hrs.]

Reply #10 –
[ Deacon | K'Ren's Quarters | Deck 10 | Vector 2 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @SummerDawn

"No, your mother isn't kzinrett. If those fools knew the Hero's Tongue, they'd know the proper term would be caitrett... human female... manrett... klingon female... k'liingonrett."  He sighed, clearly irritated at the improper use of the language, although catching a glare from his would-be host, he added, "And I don't condone your mother's treatment, either.  Had it been mine, I'd've likely wore her attackers' ears as a necklace... of course, my mother would likely chosen other body parts."

He chewed on his lower lip with one fang before settling his legs into a more comfortable position.  "Kzinretti aren't stupid," he said, holding out his hand as if presenting something tangible.  "They have all the same instincts and emotions as kzintoshi.  They just don't... communicate as we do.  Some of them can say a few words, and they understand simple things said to them."  His gaze fell to the ground.  Why was he trying to justify a kzinrett's existence to this female?  Did he feel bad at her mother's treatment at the hands of ignorant abusers?  Did he want her to understand that, on some level, kzin did care for their females, if not in a way that other races might understand.  "Nevermind," he concluded, shaking his head. 

"So why were you in surgery and how did you come to be aboard this vessel?"

It was a seemingly simple question that could potentially evoke an overly complex response.  He wondered just how concise of an answer he could provide.  "When my parents died, the Federation sent me to live with my grandfather on homeworld.  With as much as my people hate humans, you can imagine the reception I received.  Son of monkey, monkeyborn... they say kits can be cruel; that's especially true when your entire society is built around an institutional hatred."  He was silent for a long moment, regretful that this, of all things, was his strongest childhood memory.  "I wanted to fit in so my grandfather had the doctors... 'fix' me."

Again, the silence fell as he stared off towards a distant corner, collecting his thoughts behind those large golden eyes.  "I guess whatever they did left me vulnerable to some... virus that's going through the ship.  To save my life, the doctor had to undo everything I went through."  His tone grew soft, contemplative, as if he were speaking to himself more than to any other.  "I can't blame him for saving my life, but... I haven't been this... me... for so long."

Re: Chapter 45: Of Serendipity and Vicissitude | Day 02 [1600 hrs.]

Reply #11 –
[ Ens. K'Ren | K'Ren's Quarters | Deck 10 | Vector 2 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @steelphoenix
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K'Ren listened, the furr on the back of her scruff rising a little when he used 'that' word, even if only to explain the correct meaning of the word, that rett was merely a postfix indicating female, much as the Caitian language had gender specific terms within words. It was still hard not to bristle at the use even though she sat before a KZin who corrected her. She listened tho quietly as he went on to explain that kzinrett were not sub-sapient, but merely unable to communicate as the male Kzin could. That would fit with the male dominance in their society, females kept subservient, something that disgusted Cait's, their speciies treting both genders as equal, or so her mother had said.

Listening as he explained why he was in surgery that his family had 'fixed' him, though the idea of how a KZin might fix a mere cub was something she did not wish to understand or comprehend, that he had been restored to his natural form from whatever 'fixes' had been placed upon him. She nodded as he explained this was his original form, the hybrid he was born as. And in this form, sired by a human male who apparently loved Deacon's mother enough to take her under his wing, K'Ren couldn't help but feel some empathy towards him. Well, empathy and a strange desire to mate with him, a desire she couldn't quite fathom even as she felt the urge well up within her.

She nodded, "What they did to you is reversed so you are as nature intended, not whatever form your family decided you should take to 'fit in' Deacon." She smiled for the first time since they met. "It would seem we are both escaping our pasts. My mother once said that our past defines yesterday, but our actions define tomorrow. This ship it would seem is our future, and what we do today will shape it."

She placed her paw on his shoulder as she leaned in getting a good whiff of his scent, the scent of a male without a mate, Already the mating urge felt stronger around him, more so then the humans that surrounded her. "I do not like the KZin, but I think I like you Deacon." She paused, leaning back a little on her haunches, tail gently twitching. Eyes watching him, less now as a threat, evaluating him as a potential mate.

Re: Chapter 45: Of Serendipity and Vicissitude | Day 02 [1600 hrs.]

Reply #12 –
[ Deacon | K'Ren's Quarters | Deck 10 | Vector 2 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @SummerDawn

Deacon's ears swiveled back, at first in response to the smile -- something that he'd still not become accustomed to, something that among kzinti was a sign of hostility -- but no sooner had he relaxed, the female leaned in, placing a hand on his shoulder, taking in his scent.  "I do not like the kzin, but I think I like you Deacon."

He gulped, the sound seeming to echo in his ears, the realization hitting him that here he sat, nearly naked, in a female's quarters.  Never was he so aware of his discomfort, but his ill-ease was heightened by the realization that his body was responding against his will.  Flashes of memory from their escape became crystal clear, how nice she smelled, how enticing.  He knew the scent from his time on homeworld when he, like other males of his age, each on the cusp of maturing, were brought to a harem to watch a named hero mate one of his concubines.  Young enough to know the scent, to know the purpose, but too young to act on the drive.  But not now.  Now he could feel the heat in his groin, the weight of his growing tumescence.

"You're.... in season," he said, a hint of worry in his tone.  "I... probably shouldn't be here."  She'd already spoken of how her mother had been taken by any male that took her to fancy.  Was she testing him?  Trapping him here until he succumbed to his instincts?

No, this wasn't deception.  She'd touched him, he'd felt the desire building inside her as well.  She wanted him.  "I don't... have a name... I haven't earned the right to..." he whispered in protest, his hearts racing, motioning towards her body which, as much as he wanted to look away, he found himself transfixed, the soft caramel furred features, her cool but defiant stare, the slow twitch of her tail,

Re: Chapter 45: Of Serendipity and Vicissitude | Day 02 [1600 hrs.]

Reply #13 –
[ Ens. K'Ren | K'Ren's Quarters | Deck 10 | Vector 2 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @steelphoenix
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K'Ren noticed his ears flatten a little, a reaction to the baring of teeth, usually considered aggressive amongst most feline species and she immediately covered her teeth, ears folding back a little as she new that was aggressive towards a KZin. She hadn't meant to, just time amongst humans who saw the baring of teeth as a sign of pleasure had dulled her reactions to her own, and similar, kind. She was about to apologize for her smiling when Deacon said three little words that sent a mental bombshell ripping through her.

Heat. She was in heat. She knew of all the things that would make her feel like this, that was probably the last one she'd have expected but also the best explanation. And only a male like Deacon with a developed sense of smell compared to humans would have figured it out. She began to pull away a little, afraid to touch Deacon, unsure what she should do. She couldn't let him go out there, not until it was safe but she also knew that cooped up in her quarters with a male while she was in heat, that only ended one way. It'd ended up that way with Liam, a night of passion and mating, a night she'd never forget.

But now here, hormones and pheromones wafting around, a young available female in close proximity to a young eligible male, she wasn't sure she could refuse her own baser instincts. She was about to say he shouldn't, when he said that one small phrase that set K'Ren off. He questioned his right to mate with her, the right to breed a kzinrett. "I am not a kzinrett you have to earn Deacon." she remarked, a low hiss in her voice. "My body is mine to give to whom I wish. Name does not matter KZin." Her tail slowly twitched, the pause between them as she let him make up his own mind. She could see he was willing, the swelling in his boxers evidence enough of that his body was certain, but the war in his mind, that KRen could not see though she knew it was being waged between his human and KZin halves.

Re: Chapter 45: Of Serendipity and Vicissitude | Day 02 [1600 hrs.]

Reply #14 –
[ Deacon | K'Ren's Quarters | Deck 10 | Vector 2 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @SummerDawn

"I.... I'm trying to respect your.... your choice," he protested, his skin flushing beneath his silvery fur, his eyes trying to focus on anything other than her.  He couldn't rationalize, couldn't explain the confusion in his mind that turned to jumbled words in his mouth.  He wanted her, how could he not want her?  It was a monumental act of will not to simply succumb, but he'd been with this female for scarcely any time at all. She barely knew him.  He barely knew her.  It wasn't just the kzin in him that struggled to stop due to his lack of status, but his human side, not wanting to take advantage of a biological imperative that neither could control.

"I've never... even..." he added, with another uncertain gulp.  "I mean... I've seen... watched... why does that sound worse than it is?... I mean that's how they showed us..."  Why weren't his legs cooperating to get him out of this place?  He'd almost welcome a struggle with would-be killers now.

He couldn't even tell her that the momentary aggression was even more alluring, a way a kzinrett enticed the male.  It was little wonder why humans had such a difficult time understanding the mating relations between kzin.  He knew she hadn't intended it as such, but it only increased his desire to the point where he now risked full exposure if he dared stand.

And here he had chastised the male and female he'd first encountered in Below Decks the night before for their lasciviousness.  It was this ship, he was convinced.  Something in this air, perhaps?

Re: Chapter 45: Of Serendipity and Vicissitude | Day 02 [1600 hrs.]

Reply #15 –
[ Ens. K'Ren | K'Ren's Quarters | Deck 10 | Vector 2 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @steelphoenix
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K'Ren rolled forward on her haunches, getting closer to him, taking in his scent, the scent of a fellow feline, a familiar and alluring scent. She knew she was beyond the edge now, her baser instincts crying out for her to do what Caitian females did, had done as long as the species walked their world. With Liam it hadn't required coaxing and persuasion, humans it seemed were easily persuaded but this one, Deacon, was playing hard to get. And it wasn't that K'Ren had come in here wanting this, anything but this, but this close to a male cat, she knew it was merely time before she lost it.

"Right now my choice is made Deacon. I didn't come here for this, I didn't come here to mate with you." She growled a little, "But I am in heat and right now, right now our bodies need something from each other. You want it, I know this. So why don't you take it?" she asked, nose twitching as she got close to him, close enough she could smell his scent strong in her nose.

Re: Chapter 45: Of Serendipity and Vicissitude | Day 02 [1600 hrs.]

Reply #16 –
[ Deacon & Ens. K'Ren | K'Ren's Quarters | Deck 10 | Vector 2 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @SummerDawn
Joint post with SummerDawn

He stared at her for a long moment before any waning vestige of resistance failed.  He leaned forward, placing his lips against hers, drinking in her scent, the warm essence of her longing overwhelming his senses, mingling with his own desire.  There would be consequences for this moment free of inhibitions, but that seemed so distant and so unimportant. 

He laced the fingers of one hand with hers as he slid the other along her thigh to her hip, finding the edge of her tank top and slowly pulling it free.  With a gentle tug on her lower lip, he moved downward to her pert breasts, his rough tongue playing across her nipple as he drew her closer to him, fumbling to remove her pants and his at the same moment, his inexperience in direct competition with his eagerness.

If her mother had known, K'Ren probably would've never heard the end of it, but the way her hormones raged through her body, Deacon's lips on hers, his paws finding the hem of her shirt and removing it, leaving her naked above the waist in front of this male. Her lips found his face, nuzzling and licking at the light fur on his neck as her instincts took over. The pant's would come off easily enough, K'Ren knew that and let her paws explore Deacon. It was madness but her need was great and this hybrid Kzin was just what she needed in the moment.

As he licked at her breast, nuzzling her body, K'Ren mewled slightly, enjoying his ministrations, needing more. His admission of inexperience didn't faze K'Ren, it just meant that she might have to gently guide him towards the pleasure spots, and hope he did not go straight for the prize right away.

Deacon shifted his legs, the heat of the moment sufficient to cast off the final effects of the sedatives as he lifted her effortlessly from the floor, sliding her pants and panties down her long, lithe legs, allowing them to fall to the ground even as he managed to step out of his own, freeing his straining manhood.  He pressed himself against her nethers, gently, probing, until at last he slipped inside her, his girth filling her as she wrapped her legs neatly about his hips.

He carried her to the bed, laying her down atop the neatly folded sheets that seemed far too restrained, far too Starfleet. They deserved to be mussed.  His hands moved to explore her body as she did his, caressing the soft fur, tracing against the line of her stomach, the curve of her breasts.  His desire for her melted neatly into hers for him, his empathic abilities unable to discern where one began and the other ended.

K'Ren let herself be lifted up by the larger male. He was comparable to a typical cait male is stature and strength, something she didn't mind. Clothes quickly came off and she soon found herself staring up into the eyes of her latest lover, her legs wrapped around his thighs as he held her. The slowness and care with which humans mated was quickly being lost as K'Ren let herself go, knowing Deacon could handle her well enough.

The walk was short, her hips bouncing on his erect manhood as he moved. The motion caused his barbs to drag around inside, a not entirely comfortable situation but also part of cait and kzin mating. She lay back on the bed as he placed her there on her bed. Still firmly rooted inside her, she purred as his hands found the spots she enjoyed, almost as soon as she seemed to want the touch. Lost in the mating drive she didn't care as long as he mated with her.  "Deacon," she gently moaned through purrs.

The sensation was beyond anything he'd ever known, feeling her warmth around his member, his breath in time with hers, the tingling sensation at the base of his knot growing ever more tangible with each thrust.  "This is amazing," he whispered between kisses, "you're amazing," his dusky voice like a low rumble in the back of his throat.  He placed his hands to her cheeks, his mouth to hers once more, his once tenuous caress now burning, incessant.

His tail slid between them, teasing her nipples with the soft fur at the tip, raising them to prominence before he again turned his tongue to their ministration, softly sucking at each one until each strained and ached for release to match his own.  He was close, painfully close, his testicles heavy and swollen as he thrust against her, the knot the only portion of his length not yet within.

The purring in her chest intensified as Deacon moved within her, the discomfort of earlier much lessened as she adapted to his feline anatomy. She kissed him back, enjoying his attention, no longer caring that he was kzin. Her body moved with his, her own body reacting to him, her need becoming greater. A brief thought about contraceptives flashed through her mind, wondering if Deacon was on a shot, not really caring in the moment.

Bigger than most, Deacon filled K'Ren in a way no human had before, and she could feel the last part of what no human male had, his knot, pressing in with each thrust. She was close, and could hear him grunt as he came close. She was so close she could taste it, her claws extending as she grabbed hold of the sheets. Before the day was out the room would be a mess but this first time there was just the need, that urge to procreate with another feline male. "Breed me Deacon." she mewled out, "Give me release."

With a final push, the last of him slipped inside her, as he felt the tickle at last yield to a pulsing along his length as he spent his seed inside her, his kisses turning to grooming along her neck, nuzzling against her collar, her purrs now resonating with his own.  Carefully, he lifted her from the bed, her body held tightly to him as he took her place against the sheets now, his legs hanging off the edge as she sat stop his manhood, the beating of his hearts pulsing inside her.

He looked up at her, how exquisite she was, her body toned, athletic and yet soft, feminine.  Why did he question this?  How did question this?  He reached up and cupped his hand against her cheek, his long fingers playing with the edges of her hair as it framed her face.  With the other hand, he took hers, kissing her finger tips and then holding it against his cheek,  He was thoughtful for a moment, his large golden eyes taking in every glorious inch of her.  "If..." he hesitated, "if you want to... I'd like it if you called me... Xander."

Re: Chapter 45: Of Serendipity and Vicissitude | Day 02 [1600 hrs.]

Reply #17 –
[ Ens. K'Ren | K'Ren's Quarters | Deck 10 | Vector 2 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @steelphoenix
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K'Ren purred, mewling as Deacon came deep inside her body, emptying himself into her core, offering her his life giving seed. She didn't know if KZin could sire cubs in Cait but it didn't matter in that moment as Deacon lay atop her, his knot tying the two together. They had mated and the need was sated for now, the urge quelled for a time. The mewling turned back to purring as Deacon grommed her in their post-coital bliss, the act a tender touch, something she would not have thought a KZin would do.

She hadn't expected to be rolled on top, given the upper position but accepted it, holding Deacon close as their hearts beated together with the purrs of contentment. His fingers, his gentle touch only served to endear him all the more to her and she found herself considering offering him a word she thought she'd never say, a word she'd not an hour before despised. She could see the care and tenderness in his eyes as he asked her to call him Xander, and knew that the word held new meaning to them both.

K'Ren nodded, nuzzling Xander, pressing her nose against his before kissing him. "Xander." she said, "I will be your kzinrett if you will have me."

Re: Chapter 45: Of Serendipity and Vicissitude | Day 02 [1600 hrs.]

Reply #18 –
[ Deacon | K'Ren's Quarters | Deck 10 | Vector 2 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @SummerDawn

Deacon gave a slight smirk, his tail flicking playfully as he ran a finger along the edge of her ear.  "The only kzinrett that was ever in my life was my mum...", the British inflection in his voice obvious now that his defenses were down, "and you're definitely not my mum." 

"No, not kzinrett.  Caitrett," he said, then thought, "manrett?  Caitmanrett?  Never realized we don't have a word for hybrid..."  He lifted her chin to meet her gaze.  "How about just be my K'Ren?"  Gently, he wrapped his large arms around her small frame, burying his nose into the crown of her hair, drinking in her scent, the curious rhythm of his hearts beating through the lattice of his ribs.

He felt so at ease with her now.  Her embrace was comforting, natural.  He'd not even seen another female felinoid since homeworld, and even those times were guarded, ritualistic.  Never did he expect that he would have the chance to couple.  Here, between the two of them, he didn't need to worry about honor, the priesthood, the lounge... all of those things seemed remote, unattached, and he could be himself.

Re: Chapter 45: Of Serendipity and Vicissitude | Day 02 [1600 hrs.]

Reply #19 –
[ Ens. K'Ren | K'Ren's Quarters | Deck 10 | Vector 2 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @steelphoenix
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K'Ren purred in the afterglow of their mating. She was hesitant to call it love, not yet, not when her body was dictating her need. But she could enjoy it, and if things went from here, if she became his mate, then she could call it love. But for now she would call it attraction, attraction mixed with desire, spurred on by need, and tempered by knowledge. But it didn't change the moment, the feelings coursing through her body, the sated feeling, the closeness to Xander that she felt now.

She looked down at him, nuzzling his face. "Then your K'Ren I am. Perhaps in time I will be called mate, but for now lover is fine." She licked his face playfully, herself feeling no animosity towards the man. Amends had been made and K'Ren could now enjoy his company. She also knew it would be a little while before his knot softened enough her her to pull off so for now she nuzzled and kissed him.

Re: Chapter 45: Of Serendipity and Vicissitude | Day 02 [1600 hrs.]

Reply #20 –
[ Deacon | K'Ren's Quarters | Deck 10 | Vector 2 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @SummerDawn

He gave a chuckle.  "Lover.  There's another word we don't have.  I'm going to have to rewrite the entire dictionary at this rate."  With a playful tickle to her side, he chided, "You're making me rewrite a dictionary here."  Rolling his eyes to the ceiling, he considered, "Ok, so... 'lover'... 'lover'... 'to desire' would be nrrow so, a good word for 'lover' would be tznrrow, 'lovers' tznrrowti. How's that?"

Running the tip of his tail along her spine until it entwined with hers, he added, "I had to learn a lot of different languages when I was growing up.  That was my specialty.  I get a little obsessive with them at times."

A protesting whine emerged from his stomach, uncomfortably loud in the post coital quiet.  Deacon's eyes widened, his skin flushing beneath the silver fur.  "Uh.. sorry.  I keep forgetting I haven't eaten anything since last night and even that wasn't much."  He chewed his lower lip, brows furrowing slightly.  "I'm not even sure what I have to eat now.  They told me in sickbay that I had to go back to eating how I did when I was a kid.  I don't remember what I ate as a kid."  Arching an eyebrow at K'Ren, the pale whiskers that extended from them giving them a playful arc, "What do you eat?"

Re: Chapter 45: Of Serendipity and Vicissitude | Day 02 [1600 hrs.]

Reply #21 –
[ Ens. K'Ren | K'Ren's Quarters | Deck 10 | Vector 2 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @steelphoenix
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"Tznrrowti." K'Ren repeated, letting it roll off her tongue. It felt a little rough, unpolished like the Kzin word it was, but it was also Xander's word for them, for what they just shared. "Xander," she purred, "It is a special name, our name. I will wear it with pride." She nuzzled his neck, purring as their tails found and entwined. Unlike her new lover's K'Ren had little concious control over it, like her ears it responded of it's own accord.

"It is okay Xander. I'm on light rations as I was in surgery yesterday." She kissed him, "I'll fix us up something from the replicator that's high protein, good for a feline on the mend." She grinned a little, "Maybe some clothes as well, you only have your boxers if I recall." Sitting up a little, K'Ren gave an exploratory tug on Xander's still buried manhood. It felt wedged in there good, and she thought was barbed, at least it had felt that way earlier as they made love. That meant this next bit my be a bit uncomfortable, for her at least.

Lifting her hips a little. K'Ren pulled up and away, Xander's barbs tugging at the walls of her insides. It was the Cait and KZin way for males to be barbed, it helped the procreative act in their species by triggering ovulation in the female but it wasn't the most comfortable, that much K'Ren knew. It had to be done however and she jerked up, pulling free, a cross between a mewl and whine as his barbs scraped painfully along her insides before coming free. K'Ren looked down at Xander as she rolled off him, smiling a little as she went to find some clothes for him so he was presentable, and for her so she could make a meal for them.
 
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