Tayalas the explorer

Posted on Fri Dec 13th, 2019 @ 6:12pm by Lieutenant JG Gallia Norris & Lieutenant Colonel Azhul Naxea
Edited on on Mon May 11th, 2020 @ 2:40pm

Mission: Casperia Prime - A lesson in relaxation
Location: Marine Deck
1766 words - 3.5 OF Standard Post Measure

"Alright, Sergeant Bolar, do you understand the mission?" Naxea asked.

The Bolian nodded. "Yes ma'am. Prepare my team for immediate deployment to the surface. Non-lethal force is to be used unless you give the order otherwise."

"Good. Get to it," Naxea ordered. "If you have any questions or concerns, don't hesitate to contact me. Dismissed."

"Aye, ma'am," Sgt. Bolar said before heading to the barracks.

Naxea didn't like this one bit...too many things could go wrong with the situation, she mulled as she made her way out into the corridor.

Aaron Guidry, the new pre-school aide replacing Faith after her injuries during the Romulan invasion, had been gathering all the children to return them to their parents. PADD in hand he walked down the line, scanning each individual child as he did, "Okay, Robinson, Jean-Luc, such a popular name these days, and that's..." He hit the confirm icon on his screen, expecting the happy 'ding' that let him know he had all his students in place, but it didn't come. Instead he received that hateful buzzing sound that indicated a problem, in this case a big one...

He went over the roster on his PADD, then checked the kids again, Oh, crap... The little blue girl... Tayalas! His PADD confirmed she was the one missing, "Oh you have messed up now, A-A-ron...."

Tayalas, for her part, had gotten bored of the panicky, sweaty little man who took Miss Faith's place, but she'd heard clicking, like when Sib walked, maybe she could find him and go play! Her ducky under her arm, she had taken a few wobbly steps, got her balance, then moved down the corridor to the left, to the sound of the steps.

Aaron, in a near panic, grabbed the next person he saw, a female Marine with a closely shaven head, "Uh, miss, could you help me?"

PFC Briggs looked over the guy in the sweater vest and sighed, "Let me guess, somebody stole your sweet roll..."

"Uh, no, I'm..." He lowered his voice to a whisper, "Missing a child."

"Missing a child?" She growled, shaking her shorn head angrily, "Idiot. Stay here."

Aaron, not knowing what to do but knowing this woman might kill him if he angered her, simply gathered the rest of the children together, "Okay, so has anyone seen Tayalas?"

Briggs double timed it to the Major's side, "Major, we got a problem."

Naxea raised a curious eyebrow. "Oh? And what's the problem, PFC?"

"The idiot from the preschool lost a kid, ma'am." Briggs replied, "Kid's name is Kai Alice or something."

"Kai Alice?" Naxea questioned. "I don't know a Kai Alice, but fine. What does the 'idiot from preschool' want from me?"

"Probably to save his stupid ass by finding the kid, Ma'am." Briggs shrugged, "Ya know, maybe it wasn't Kai Alice... Name Tayalas sound like anything?"

"Tayalas? Damn," Naxea said as she thought of Gallia's daughter. "Spread the word to be on the lookout for a little Andorian girl but approach her gently and inform me immediately if you find her."

"Yes, ma'am." Briggs replied, heading back to the Marine deck to do just that.

Tayalas had finally found the sound of Sib, only it wasn't Sib, it was a lady in those weird feet things her mommies wore, though dark hair mommy wore them more than fire hair mommy. That wasn't what she was looking for. A pleasant smell caught her nose, it was cookies, like Auntie Yorga made! With the pieces the color of short mommy's hair! They were yummly and now she wanted some, so she turned to the smell and listened with her ears and her antennae, she still wasn't quite sure how they worked, but they helped a lot. The sound of someone setting down a plate was easy to follow, and a minute or so later she found it, one cookie still on it. Well, until a tiny blue hand changed that situation, at least. She almost fell reaching for it, so she decided she'd sit for a minute in the corner where it was cool and have her cookie while the ducky played look out.

Naxea sighed as she rounded a corridor. "Computer, what is the location of the Tayalas?"

"Crewmember Tayalas could not be located," came the female voice of the computer.

"Fine," Naxea said frustrated, sometimes wishing she could strangle the computer. "Computer, what is the location of a female Andorian child around Deck 9."

"Two andorian children by that description are located in the mess hall and the holosuite," came the computer's reply.

Naxea paused for a moment as she decided which place was likely Tayalas had gone to. "Is the child in the holosuite alone?"

"Negative. The child in the holosuite is with two adult Andorians.

"Great!" Naxea said, as she picked up her pace, making her way to the mess hall, deciding against alerting Security as that would likely scare Tayalas and send her mother into a panic.

That cookie was so good, but it made her a little sleepy. She yawned adorably, cuddling her ducky close and closing her little eyes, she'd only be a second, then she'd get up and look for Sib and more cookies.

Naxea continued at her brisk pace as she entered the Mess Hall, nearly colliding with the doors before they could slide open in time. She looked around, seeing only a few officers and crewmembers eating. She turned to exit the hall, before a bundle of blue in a corner caught her attention. Kneeling down in front of Tayalas, Naxea gently placed her hand on her arm. "Tayalas? It's Naxea," she said softly.

The baby yawned, blinked, and finally opened her eyes, "See-a?" She said, recognizing her friend with the nose she loved to play with. Reaching up she touched her nose, definitely her, "See-a!"

Naxea couldn't help but smile at the little girl. "Keep that up and I just may keep you for myself. Come on," she said as she grabbed Tayalas and picked her up. "Now, how did you get away from your teacher?" she asked the child in a caring tone.

Tayalas looked up into her friend's eyes and began to explain, "Siral," she said, pointing to herself, "Sib!" she said, pointing ahead to the place where she thought she'd heard her horsey friend, then shaking her head, "Sib." Then back behind her, "Cookie, seepy, See-a." It really wasn't all that complex, and See-a knew the last part because she was there.

"Oh, you thought you heard S'hib? Then ate a cookie and fell asleep?" Naxea asked with a as she carried the child down the corridor back to the school. "I see...if only my life was so simple," she said with a grin at the little girl.

Up ahead the sound of an angry Scot filled the air, "How in Hades did ye monoge ta lose mah bebby? Is no tha hard ta cape an oye on a bloody sprog!" Gallia screamed, "Ah'd shove yer 'ead up yer arse if it was no already there, ye doom bastard!"

"Commander Norris, this kind of language is really not..." Aaron began, trying to calm the woman whose eyes and hair now matched.

"Shut it, doomarse!" Gallia fired back, she was really about to let him have it now.

"Mama." Tayalas said to See-a, she sounded mad, too.

"Sounds like someone's in trouble with your mom," Naxea said to Talyalas. Gallia was friendly enough but sounded like a roaring banshee when angry--though she was rightfully so. "Don't worry, Gallia. I found her," she said as she rounded the corner.

"Oh, thank God! Naxea, darlin', I dinnae have the words." She turned to Aaron, her look of joy replaced instantaneously by her previous fury, "Ah'd love ta cape yellin' at ye, but mah bebby needs me."

"I'd be happy to yell at him for you, ma'am." Briggs offered.

"Aye, thot'd be wonderful. Yar too kind." Gallia said, walking over to where Tayalas had fallen back asleep against Naxea's chest, "So, whar'd shay get te?"

She handed Tayalas over to Gallia, keeping Tayalas cradled as to not disturb her too much during the exchange. "She found her way to the messhall and from what she told me, she ate a cookie and passed out," Naxea explained. "She told me she took off because she thought she heard Lieutenant S'hib nearby and went looking for him apparently."

"Shay told ye all that, did shay?" Gallia replied, a little shocked, "Ye must understand her very well, Naxea." The fact that the Marine could understand her baby almost as well as she could herself was somewhat bittersweet, Tay could now talk to people outside of the family, she was really growing up, "No surprise she took off after S'hib though, and ye know shay's gonna find food."

"Cookie." Tayalas said from the land of nod.

Naxea chuckled at Tayalas. "She's not too hard to understand. I mean, I can understand you--most of the time," Naxea teased with a grin. She turned to the school aide, leveling a gaze that would give a Klingon pause. "I take it you're the 'idiot from preschool that lost a kid' as PFC Briggs informed me of. Disappear from my sight before I sic Briggs on you."

"Right." Briggs sneered, "Or I might take my combat knife to that lovely man bun of yours."

Aaron decided not to say anything else, simply nodding and leaving, he'd file an official complaint against this Briggs woman later, Awfully old for a PFC anyway, isn't she?

"Ah'm glad shay's so comfortable witye." Gallia smiled, "Think wa're gonna take her to the mountains whar is nice an' cool for her. Yar mar than welcome."

"Me too. I'm sure she'll enjoy it but from the sound of things, I may have my hands full here so I better stay and keep an eye on things," Naxea said as her gaze shifted to Tayalas. She was never one for being friendly towards kids but Tayalas was different. She wasn't sure if it was her background or the fact she was just so adorable or both.

"Well, ye're always welcome anywhere we are." Gallia replied, "The boss wouldnae let it be no other way." She looked down, pointing for Naxea to do the same so she could see that the sleepy sprog had taken the Marine's finger in her tiny hand, "Aye, Ah think thot's a yes far sure."

"Thank you. I'll be sure to keep that in mind,Naxea said with a smile as she looked at Tayalas.