Seeking Mindo

Posted on Thu Jun 27th, 2024 @ 3:04pm by Raven Mattel & Ignatius & Commander Mindo

Mission: The Only Thing Left Was Hope
Location: Risa - Nuvia City

ON:

Having thankfully and mercifully made it to Risa on that rust-bucket turned into a transport vessel, Raven and Ignatius were glad to be on firm soil again. They had landed in the very far end of the main city and had to take a taxi pod to their hotel, one more indignity from their journey. But, as soon as they stepped out, they were greeted by the warm Risian air and the smell of luxury, relaxation, and tropical fun filled their senses, making the awful trip a quickly fading memory. The sun was setting over a sparkling blue ocean, a breeze gently lapping against their grateful faces.

Outside the entrance of their hotel, a porter quickly appeared and took hold of their belongings to bring inside, as both Ignatius and Raven warned the young gentleman in a very stern tone that the crate marked "Fragile" was to be given the utmost care. The humanoid male, rather tall and strapping with light orange colored hair, just gave a curt nod before carrying the crate into the resort.

Taking a moment to truly see the city around them, a smile formed on both their lips in unison and they looked to each other with child-like glee.

"Riiiiisa." Raven sighed. "I forgot how beautiful it was here."

Raven had at one time been infamous on the pleasure planet, until her style of comedy was deemed "too mean", forcing her to retreat back to Earth and then onto the Pandora. But that was years ago now, she held no trepidation on returning to Risa.

"Do you feel that warm breeze?" Ignatius swooned, closing his eyes, "This was a good idea."

"A fabulous idea." Raven agreed, "Do you think we have time for one cocktail?"

"I mean, we can't reunite with Mindo looking like this!" Ignatius frowned, as he peered down at as his rumpled attire. "And smelling like... ugh! What would he think of us?"

"Vagrants! Rogues! Unclean!" Raven declared, putting her palm to her forehead dramatically, "He would cast us out onto the street!"

"He just might." Ignatius shrugged, "We shouldn't risk it. Let's go to our room and freshen up first."

"A plan." Raven smiled, placing her arm around Ignatius' just as the porter returned to escort them inside.

Sometime later, the Turbolift opened and the fab duo stepped out into the lobby. Raven was now wearing a long, green and floral sheer gown with an exposed bust to mid section and a long leg split. She had replicated it from a list of famous historical dresses, apparently it caused quite a stir in the early 21st century and was known simply as “The Versace Dress”. Ignatius was wearing a soft linen suit in similar shades of green and florals to match, the perfect summer attire for their night on the tropical paradise.

“I can’t believe you were unable to locate Mindo in the directory.” Raven said as she checked her leg through the dress split to ensure it was suitably shiny enough.

“Nothing.” Ignatius shrugged with a frown.

“I was sure he’d have some kind of bar or restaurant,” Raven said, “Like on the Pandora.”

“Well, actually, it occurred to me, what if he doesn’t want to be reminded of the Pandora?” Ignatius asked, “Maybe we have underestimated how he feels?”

“Oh how dreadful.” Raven sighed, “I’d hate to think of our Mindo being so upset. I should have been a better friend to him and visited sooner.”

“Alas we would have found ourselves in the same position.” Ignatius said calmly, putting a reassuring arm around her, “Not knowing where he is.”

From behind them came a very purposeful throat-clearing noise. The two turned to find the hotel porter with the orange hair standing there. He put on a smile, “You two look like you’re ready for a night on the town. I know a place that’s very popular.”

Ignatius raised an eyebrow, “Sounds intriguing.”

“The best drinks and a very Earth-friendly crowd.” The porter nodded as he handed over a digital business card. The glass rectangle showed the name and logo of the venue in Risian on the front while on the back there was an interactive navigation map showing the way to get there from the hotel.

“Fancy.” Raven commented as she turned it over and handed the card to Ignatius.

“Thanks.” Ignatius smiled as he looked over the card. “What does this mean? The name on the front?”

"Destiny." The porter replied.

"Oooh." They both cooed.

“Let’s get that drink here, and we’ll come up with a plan to find Mindo.” Raven said emphatically.

"Agreed," Ignatius nodded as he looked to the porter again. "Thank you, young man, for the brilliant suggestion."

“My pleasure.” The porter dipped his head as he walked away, “it’s what I do.”

Ignatius turned back around and held out the card, looking to follow the guided directions. “Come now Raven, we won’t keep Risa waiting.”

Raven hooked her arm around his and they started waking out of the lobby. After a moment she frowned, “Did that worker look familiar to you at all?”

“Oh not again.” Ignatius sighed, giving a laugh as they departed.

* * * * *

About four blocks southeast from the hotel, in the bar known as "Destiny," Mindo was having a drink in a booth on the far side of the place with a beautiful Betazoid whose friends were late for their rendezvous. Mindo's mental block to all telepaths added a mysterious, dangerous element to him, which usually intrigued them. This particular Betazoid was a tougher egg to crack.

Mindo was used to being slapped at times, but he wasn't prepared for this one.

"Do you take me for some harlot, little boy?" she yelled.

"I'm a young thirty!" Mindo protested. "And that wasn't the kind of ride I was talking about! I just want to come with you and your friends!"

Another loud slap. When you worked on Risa, everyone there on vacation just assumed whatever you said was a double entendre or some sick pickup line. Unfortunately, those didn't work on people waiting for late friends to leave with.

"Geez, lady," Mindo said, rubbing his reddened cheek. "I'm just trying to get off here!"

Now the bouncer had taken notice and was approaching their table. "Is everything okay here?" the large man asked.

"Fine," said the Betazoid. "I was just leaving."

As the woman walked away, the bouncer moved closer to Mindo, towering above him. "Perhaps it's time for you to go as well," the bouncer suggested. It was a very forceful suggestion, and Mindo gulped as he noticed within the bouncer's intimidating stare that one of his eyes was twitching, which for some reason made him look even more sinister.

*****

As Ignatius and Raven walked down a street, they approached the location of the bar as per the guided map and the card began to glow green in Ignatius' hand, indicating they were close.

"I'm just saying he looked like someone I knew." Raven was finishing saying.

"It's bad enough we still owe Madame Kroll a favor," Ignatius sighed, "Without adding even more old acquaintances to the list. Anyway, looks like we're here."

Expecting to see an exotic building with lights, music, and heaps of people, they were instead confounded to find an empty concrete lot with nothing but a small capsule sitting in the middle. They both looked at each other as if to say, "That's it?" at the same time.

Approaching the capsule, which was a metal tube no bigger than two meters high and one wide, they noticed a doorway at the front. As soon as they got close enough, the door opened, and a burly bouncer in a grey suit stepped forward. He looked the two up and down for a moment, before noticing the card in Ignatius' hand.

"Your pass." The bouncer asked, indicating to the card.

"My pass? Oh, this?" Ignatius blinked as he offered it forward.

The bouncer diligently scanned the card with a device, which then also glowed green. As soon as it did, the bouncer stepped aside and indicated for the two to continue into the capsule. With a shrug to each other, they stepped forward. Inside the capsule they noticed a circular glowing floor and transporter conduits above on the roof. That was it.

"OH! It's a transport." Raven gasped as she looked around. "So, this isn't the actual venue?"

"First time?" The bouncer smiled a little. "No, this isn't the venue. Destiny is made up of many different rooms that are located all around Risa. Each with its own theme, music, drinks, and people. You step into the transport, and you are taken to one of those rooms. There are many, many rooms."

"But how do we know where we're going?" Ignatius asked, peering around the capsule suspiciously.

"You don't." The bouncer said, leaning in. "That's the point."

"We let fate decide." Raven started to grin, now getting the concept. "Wherever we end up, that's where we're supposed to be."

Ignatius raised an eyebrow, "Destiny.... Alright, well, let's let fate decide."

The two linked arms again and stepped onto the transport. Moments later they were being beamed to another location...

* * * * *

Ten minutes prior to that, Mindo stepped out of the transport into...

Mindo gasped. It was a very large barcade! About five times larger than his own on the Pandora, he estimated, with room for far more games. As Mindo walked in, he turned to someone who looked like the host. He was a welcome change from the bouncer at the previous bar; an orange-haired man with an average height with a seemingly friendly face.

Mindo turned to the host as he walked in, activating his hovering device. "Is there a charge to play games?"

The orange-haired man smiled. "No charge," he replied. "Play as much as you like. Remember... this is your Destiny."

Mindo couldn't help but think he'd seen--or maybe heard?--this person before. But just a few yards away, Donkey Kong was staring the small Fesarian right in the face, and Mindo made a beeline straight to it. Realizing he was being rather rude, he turned back to the host.

"Thank..." Mindo started to say, but the host wasn't there. Just then, the electronic scream of a princess being kidnapped by a giant ape brought Mindo's attention back to more important matters...

Across the other side of the room, Raven and Ignatius had just materialized out of the transport into the very same room.

"Oh it's perfect!" Raven gushed as the two entered, "It's just like the Pandora but... bigger."

"And louder!" Ignatius called out with a frown. As much as he liked the games and excitement, he had been hoping for a more sophisticated venue like a jazz lounge. His attire was entirely too baroque for an amusement park. But he couldn't resist seeing the joy in Raven's eyes as she peered around the barcade, clearly thinking of home.

"We'll need to take photos for references." Raven was marveling as she twirled around and around, "In case, you know, we want ideas for Mindo's place."

Ignatius smiled as Raven spun around whimsically, her floral gown floating in her wake. "Of course. It really must be our destiny if we found this place. Because it reminds us so much of the Pandora."

"Yes!" Raven clapped giddily. "How fun!"

Unfortunately, Ms. Mattel wasn't looking where she was whimsically spinning and as she turned around once more, her gaze staring up at the neon lights across the ceiling, she spun directly into the path of a security guard. The guard, having not seen the Amazonian-like woman twirling towards him, was pushed sideways by the impact with Raven, sending him hopping into a waitress who was carrying a tray full of cocktails. The tray full of cocktails ended up being dumped onto a group of people, who in turn stood up and knocked over a table, which then poured their drinks over another group of people. On and on the domino effect went down the line of gaming machines like a slow-moving avalanche of cocktails.

At the summit of the collision, Raven looked absolutely aghast. "Sorry!" She whispered.

"Dang it!" came a yell from a few yards away, breaking the very awkward silence and grumbling that was forming over the mess. Some people turned to look at the source. Mindo turned away from his game and said, "I just got hit by a..." as he turned, his voice got a little quieter. "...barrel?" he finished.

The place was in utter, stunned silence. Drinks and food everywhere, broken dishes and overturned tables, people wet from falling into alcohol puddles on the ground. As far as awkward moments went, this was about par for the course for Mindo since his move to Risa. But usually there were fewer people and smaller messes. Mindo whistled in amazement at the sight. Just then, the place became a massive wave of cacophony and hysteria, and just then, Mindo saw the only dress in the entire place that had no stains on it and ultimately recognized the style, and knew that only one person in the universe could wear it right... and at the moment her expression was that of a mouse trapped in a cage of cats. At least this mouse was well-dressed, Mindo thought.

He used his boots to propel him fast to Ignatius and Raven and into the teleportation chamber, where they disappeared from the messy barcade and landed... right inside the first capsule they'd entered, with the same bouncer standing next to it.

Mindo's momentum carried the trio outside the capsule and onto the ground, with Mindo landing on his face in between Raven and Ignatius, cutting the Fesarian's forehead.

Ignatius gave a loud "OOF!" as he hit the pavement outside. One minute he had been staring in complete shock at the mess Raven had caused and then there had been a flash and suddenly they were outside again. For a moment he thought they had been ejected by the bouncers for Raven's clumsiness. Then he became acutely annoyed that his new suit might have been ruined.

He growled as he tried to stumble to his feet, "WHAT IN THE F-"

"MINDO!" Raven cried out, interrupting him. She was already on her feet. A club girl always recovered quickly; she'd been ejected from far too many bars to land on her backside for long. She was already reaching down to help the two men back up when she realized she hadn't imagined who she saw blasting towards him inside the bar; Commander Mindo had indeed rescued them.

"Mindo?" Ignatius groaned incredulously as he looked over at the other person laid out on the ground. His eyes widened, "MINDO!"

"Hi guys!" Mindo said with lots of surprise and happiness to see them. He sat up and wiped at his forehead, where a tiny rivulet of black blood began to trickle down. "What are you doing here?" he asked. He looked at Ignatius. "Are you ok?"

"A little ruffled." Ignatius huffed, as he reached into his breast pocket and pulled out a handkerchief, which he offered to dab on the Engineer's forehead. "But you've come out a little worse."

Raven bent over to peer at him, concerned, "Oh no! Shall we get a doctor?"

"Erg," Mindo grunted. "I should be ok. No blurred vision. Just a scrape, I think." Ignatius finished dabbing, seeing the cut didn't run very deep. Just a surface wound.

Mindo carefully stood up and brushed himself off. "It's so good to see you both!" he said. He checked his Leg Propulsion Devices (LPD) and found them undamaged. He shifted his legs and the rockets activated, bringing the small Fesarian up to their height with the softest of hums. "How long will you be here? I'd love to catch up!"

"Well, we came to find you." Raven admitted, "And look what Destiny has brought us."

She wrapped her arms around the Engineer, giving him a tight hug. Ignatius, now on his feet, did likewise and the two made a Mindo sandwich.

"We are fine, if not a little creatively stumped." Ignatius explained as he stood back again, "But also missing you. What have you been up to?!"

Mindo couldn't be happier to see his friends. They'd been away from each other for far too long.

"Well," he said, "I made contact with Raven's friend Fir Jellim after I resigned from Starfleet and have been pretty much working here as a... well, the term Risa uses is 'Recreational Service Provider,' with 'Recreation' being a versatile term. It's good work, though."

"Ooh like an event host?" Raven cooed, "That would be so fun! Planning activities, meeting new people, having a blast."

Ignatius smirked and gently touched her arm, "Not that, darling."

Raven furrowed her brow, confused "So you work at a hotel then?"

Ignatius looked to Mindo and shrugged, "Uhh, do you?"

Mindo looked back and forth at the two of them. It was apparent Ignatius had caught on more than Raven, but Mindo had to admit Raven was closer than things appeared.

"I don't work in hotels," he said, more to Ignatius than Raven. He thought for a second how to put it. "I'm one of the people working here whose job it is to find people and show them a good time," he said at last, adding, "...whatever that may entail. You can look at that however you like, but I'm happy here and yes, it's often a blast."

"Gosh I really have been away from Risa for too long!" Raven exclaimed as she finally got what was being hinted at. "I forgot all about... companions? Yes, companions is a good term for it. But what about warp cores and pulsar rays, the blinking lights in the plasma whatevers? You know, all that Engineering stuff you used to do?"

Mindo shrugged. "You mean the turmoil of keeping an entire ship from exploding all the time?" he asked. "I'd rather be here. It's a better place for a Fesarian to be. As a Starfleet engineer, I had to rely on years of research and experience in knowing every function of a ship. Here I just be myself. As long as I'm entertaining someone five nights a week, I don't get yelled at or demoted or court-martialed..." He looked into Raven's eyes and saw her disappointment. "Okay, I miss running my bar," he said at last. "Happy now?"

"Yes!" Raven cried, clapping her hands. "I miss it too!"

"We did just happen to get thrown out of a very similar establishment," Ignatius commented, raising an eyebrow as he looked back to the portal. "I wonder if they will let us back in?"

"I could perform for them." Raven suggested, a smile growing on her face, "As a way of making amends for making a mess? What do you say Mindo?"

"Let's do it!" Mindo said with a grin. "Raven Mattel's mighty return to Risa in a once-in-a-lifetime performance!"

The trio locked their arms around each other and bravely walked towards the portal door again.

"They'll have to forgive us." Ignatius said matter-of-factly.

"Oh I'll give them a show." Raven said with a smile, before looking to Mindo with a smile, "For my friend."

OFF