Family Matters

Posted on Sun Jun 21st, 2020 @ 8:12am by Captain Nycolas Temple & Emilie Temple
Edited on on Tue Jul 7th, 2020 @ 1:44pm

Mission: Into the Wild
Location: Senior Crew Quarters, Deck 2

A Mission Post by Captain Nycolas Temple & Emilie Temple
Mission: Into The Wild
Location: Senior Crew Quarters, Deck 2
Timeline:
Sun Sep 24th, 2017 @ 3:28pm


Nyx and Katrine were seated at their small dining table, the young girl speaking excitedly about her new friend from day care as Nyx watched with a bemused smile. It was breakfast time in the Temple quarters as Nyx nursed a large mug of coffee and Katrine surgically pulled apart a piece of toast with marmalade with her bare hands.

"And Sarah likes purple, which isn't my favourite colour but that's okay," Katrine said in her usual matter-of-fact manner, "It's my three favourite colour, which is still a lot really. Yeah so she had a bow that was green, even though purple was her favourite colour, and she let my try it on because I said green was my favourite."

"Ahh." Nyx replied with a knowing smile. "She sounds very friendly."

"Yeah." Katrine smiled, as she took a mouthful of toast, "I like it a lot and I wanted to ask for one just like it for my birthday."

"Okay," Nyx nodded, now realising the point of this conversation, "I will see what mummy says."

"Says about what?" Emilie asked as she wandered into the room, rubbing her eyes as she yawned widely.

"Green bows." Nyx answered. When his wife approached, Nyx jumped out his chair and pulled another from under the table for Emilie. She smiled at him wearily as she sat down. He leaned over and kissed her cheek, "How did you sleep?"

"So-so." Emilie sighed, absent-mindedly wiping Katrine's marmalade covered fingers with a napkin. "Been feeling a bit of motion sickness though, probably from all the tumbling about the Rec Deck. Still haven't quite gotten my space-legs yet and that didn't help."

Nyx meanwhile moved over to the replicator and brewed up a breakfast meal for his wife, making a cup of tea and bowl of muesli. He carefully walked it over to the table and placed them down in front of Emilie. As she tucked in with a grateful smile, he checked the monitoring device on her arm, the last residual of Doctor Adaestron's treatments for Emilie's injury. According to the signals, her arm was healing nicely and the bone regenerator had done its job.

"Are you seeing the Doctor today?" Nyx asked gently.

Emilie nodded, casting a careful look to Katrine, "Yes, I'll finally get this device off."

"See if he can give you something for the motion sickness," Nyx replied with a smile. "It'll help calm your stomach."

The peaceful moment was interrupted as a chime sounded across the room, the computer alerting Nyx to an incoming subspace call. Nyx sighed, giving an apologetic shrug to Emilie and Katrine, "I'm sorry guys. But since we left the dark matter, Starfleet have been keen to get frequent updates."

"Of course," Emilie smile, petting his arm, "We understand."

"Ask about my green bow!" Katrine spoke up, biting into her toast.

Nyx grinned as he stood, walking over to the desk in the main living area and turning up his screen. Reading the details of the communication, he was surprised to find it wasn't from Starfleet HQ, but a private residence.

On Earth.

Copenhagen.

Brigitte Temple's residence.

Taking a deep breath, Nyx accepted the call. He smiled, "Hello, mother."

"Nycolas William Temple!" His mother immediately barked into the screen, that disapproving frown evident even across the fuzziness of long-distance subspace. "Why have you been out of communications?"

No matter how old he got, or what high position he now held, Nyx could always count on his mother to make him feel like a small boy once more. It was like a parental super power that she used at will.

"Operational matters, Mor," Nyx replied through a pained smile, "I can't discuss that with you."

"Nonsense," Brigitte scoffed, waving her hand away as if easily waving away all of Starfleet mission protocols. "I'm your mother, and a representative of the European Council, don't you forget. I have some clearance on the whereabouts of my son, daughter in law, and grandchild, all Earth citizens I remind you,"

Of course she didn't. Nyx knew she didn't. Even Brigitte probably knew she didn't. But she had a way of saying a statement like this with total authority and people simply believed it, or at least followed her wishes. It's how she had managed to become not just a successfully elected political leader, but a key power-broker in government circles for two decades.

"I'm sure the Federation President will fill you in." Nyx remarked with a dry smile. He had never cared for politics or government, and he had never taken the profession seriously. Unlike his mother and brother, of course, who thought it to be the highest calling. Instead, Nyx liked to joke about their indulgent ceremonies and do-nothing meetings.

"Please don't take that tone, Nyx," Brigitte sighed, "And yes, I will ask the President when I see her at the Inauguration luncheon next week. But that doesn't get you off the hook, my boy."

Nyx could only nod along, knowing that he was only ever a passenger in this conversation.

"Now," Mother Temple continued, "How are Emilie and Katrine? I do hope you are keeping them safe, Nyx, and no harm has come to them?"

"Safe as houses," Nyx lied, "We're just charting anomalous gases in the region, total boring science stuff, Mor."

There was no way Nyx was going to tell his mother about the Tzenkethi, or the debris field, or the dark matter, or the broken bone for that matter. She would immediately have Emilie and Katrine removed from the Pandora in a heartbeat and Nyx would be without his family again. Besides, it wouldn't do his mother any good to worry about their life in service, so pretending they were on a simple scientific expedition was his only course of action.

"Gases can become toxic. Or combustive." She immediately replied, giving a stern look. "You must take it seriously. Where are my precious girls anyway?"

Emilie had peered over and indicated whether she should come say hello. From outside of his mother's view, Nyx gave her a warning wave, shaking his hand side to side, thinking it best that she not get sucked into this long-distance lecture. Emilie shrugged and shook her head, not having the energy to get in between Nyx and his mother this early in the morning.

"It's morning here ship-time so they're getting ready to leave," Nyx lied again. Two lies in one minute. "I'm on duty in five minutes myself."

"I see," Brigitte replied with a frown.

In the same way that Nyx didn't appreciate politics, his mother didn't understand active duty. To her, there was higher priority in internal affairs and self improvement rather than space exploration and border patrols. To her, the purpose of humanity was still an on-going pursuit of utopia - maintaining harmony and the betterment of their own society. She saw Starfleet's involvement with other races and planets as courting trouble and causing disruptions to Earth's peace. This didn't always win her friends in San Francisco, of course, but it was popular with the Federation politicians of Paris.

"Well, your brother is doing well," She continued, "He held a diplomatic ceremony on his first day, welcoming the Chaka-kans or something. Apparently a big deal."

Nyx nodded, "Yeah, the C'hakilians have been former enemies and an isolated state for several years. Magnus holding talks with them at the Palais is a big win for his department."

"Oh, so you speak to him but not your mother?" She counted quickly, rounding on Nyx with a double-barrel stare.

Immediately placing palm to forehead, Nyx groaned loudly, eyes closed in annoyance. "Mother, have you really contacted me all the way from Earth just to have a go at me? You've been nothing but lecturing and condescending."

Brigitte sat back in her chair, deflating a little, before finally giving a small smile. "I'm sorry for being so hard on you, Nyx. It's my way of not admitting that I'm worried about you. I know the Inconnu Expanse is terribly dangerous and I know you're not just monitoring gases."

Nyx also sat back, sighing, "It's what I do, Mor. I'm a Captain of this amazing ship, with the most talented crew I have ever seen. Yes, it gets a bit dicey now and then but I have full confidence that they can get us through any tough patch. They are extraordinary officers."

His mother listened, arms folded across her chest defensively still. Brigitte tried to take onboard what her son was saying but also knew that if she could somehow reach into that screen and pull him, Emilie, and Katrine back to Earth in an instant, she would absolutely do so. No amount of reassurance was going to change this feeling. "I've never seen you speak so warmly about an assignment before, Nycolas."

Nyx shrugged, "I've never been a Captain before. It's a whole different feeling and focus."

"It suits you." Brigitte replied warmly, giving a brief smile. "Doesn't mean I have to like it, though. Now, I believe it is your Katrine's birthday soon, I hope you will be in contact so I may speak to my darling grandchild face to face?"

"I will try, mother," The son agreed, "I can't make promises though."

"Okay..." Brigitte nodded, "And will I be able to send her something? Emilie left so quickly from Earth I'm sure they forgot to bring things."

"I think we have everything, or can get it from the Rec Deck." Nyx replied simply, not wishing to think about the logistics of using Federation vessels to transport a birthday present. But he knew his mother would find a way to do it.

"Well I hope you will get her something from me." Brigitte instructed tersely, "This will be her first birthday without her Mormor."

Nyx rubbed his eyes and sighed, "I will make sure the biggest one is from you, but to be honest we're trying not to spoil Katrine while we're onboard. It's so easy to give her everything she wants, another perk of the job I suppose, but we don't want to make her ungrateful and expecting to be indulged all the time."

"A fair idea," Brigitte nodded, "Easier said then done, of course. You and Magnus never went without."

"And it spoiled him rotten." Nyx clapped back, thinking about his younger brother, "Look at him now, living the high life in Paris."

Brigitte laughed despite herself, "You're both very accomplished in your fields, Nyx. Neither of you turned out spoilt."

"Tell that to fancy pantaloons." Nyx smirked.

"I will. After I speak to the President." Brigitte replied with her eyebrows raised. "I have a lot to tell her about you both."

"Please don't!" Nyx whined like a child, "I don't want the President of the Federation associating me with your shameless nepotism."

Brigitte held up her hands, "I only do it out of love for you both."

Nyx smiled again at that thought, "I know, mother. I know."

The two Temples smiled at each other across the subspace for a while before Nyx finally had to leave, so mother and son said bid fond farewell to each other once more. Though not before Brigitte reminded Nyx to stay in more regular contact and Nyx had obediently agreed. Once the call was finished, Nyx stood again and moved back to the kitchen table where Emilie was now cleaning up. Katrine had jogged off to wash her hands before Daycare.

Nyx leaned over and kissed Emilie on the cheek, and she smiled warmly. "How is your mother?"

"As dauntless as usual," Nyx replied simply, putting his arms around Emilie, "She wants to get something for Katrine's birthday."

Emilie nodded, "Of course. We should let her, it will be hard for Katrine and Brigitte to be so far apart this time."

Nyx rested his head on her shoulder, swaying a little as he hugged Emilie. "So she told me. And will apparently be telling the new Federation President."

"Oh dear." Emilie sighed, "She wouldn't, would she?"

"If my mother has anything to do with it," Nyx smiled, "She will have the President send a present too."

OFF