章 10: Filigree, the Newest Member of the Crew
The conversation with Janeway in her Ready Room took a while and ranged between a number of topics. The ripple in Katye's aura had come from a memory of her past life surfacing, long before she met me, in fact, which is why she had agreed to take the sprite in. If she had refused Filigree, the Yang spirit would have offered itself to her, and refusing the spirit as well, would have likely resulted in it making the assumption that none of them were worthy to serve her, which would have led to the spirit doing something foolish that would have probably endangered it and all of the sprites.
By the end, Filigree was allowed to accompany Katye throughout the ship. We had also agreed to attempt to incorporate some of our sensor technology into the Voyager as well, so that they would be able to detect mana. That alone would not prevent this from happening again, but they would know to call one of us if they found a high concentration of mana.
After we left the Ready Room, Katye and I headed back to the Shuttle Bay. The whole little adventure had taken a little over an hour, but so much had happened that I was done with the rest of the day. When we reached the lounge area on our ship, I collapsed face first onto my usual couch and had no intention of going back to my training.
"It's not that bad," Katye said from the kitchen area.
"I just want to know when things changed from sci-fi to pure fantasy," I complained, rolling over and draping an arm over my eyes.
"When we joined," Katye chuckled as she walked over.
"What is 'sci-fi'?" Filigree asked.
"Sci-fi means science-fiction. Rule two: you are not allowed to repeat any of the things that Rebecca, Echo, Raven, and I talk about in privacy," Katye instructed.
"Yes, my... yes, Katye," the pixie replied with a hint of bashfulness at her near mistake. "Who are Rebecca, Echo, and Raven?"
I laughed while Katye let out a sigh.
"She is Rebecca," Katye explained. "Echo and Raven will come here later, and I will introduce you to them then."
"So, my Queen," I teased. "Are we still going to the party tonight? Prixin lasts for three days, so we can miss the first night."
"I promised Neelix that I would bring food and you promised some diluted Spirit Wine. Stop being a lazy dragon," she replied with a hint of annoyance.
"Dragon?!?" Filigree exclaimed with fear.
"Relax, Filigree, she isn't going to eat you..."
"Yeah, the only Fairy I eat, is Katye," I chuckled.
Katye shot me a death glare to which I gave her a sheepish smile with no regret of my words, but the pixie took my words literally.
"You shall not harm the Queen!" Filigree shouted and pointed her tiny hands at me.
She released a beam of golden, Yang energy that struck me in the shoulder. It was like a mix of an electric shock and a burn which stung, of course, but she simply was not strong enough to cause me any real damage. Unfortunately, my uniform was not so lucky, and a small hole had been burned into it.
Katye plucked Filigree out of the air by her wings and chided, "Rule number three: no attacking people randomly, even if they deserve it. Rebecca is my mate, rather one of them, so she isn't going to hurt me. She was just making a very poor and crude joke."
"You tamed a dragon?!?" she asked surprised, cutely dangling from her wings.
"Something like that," I retorted as I sat up and took off my damaged jacket. "I'll stop teasing you; I'm sorry. You just looked like you needed to lighten up a little."
Katye placed Filigree on the table and sighed, "I do, but it's not the easiest thing right now."
"Wanna talk about it?"
"Just memories of my past life... Things weren't easy for me when I was a simple Arcane Fairy. That's why I didn't refuse the Yang Spirit's request."
"I'm sorry... I know how those memories can affect you," I replied, thinking back to the ones that I had awakened with Tori's help.
"How did you lose your memories?" Filigree asked as she sat down on the edge of the table.
"I died in a war, but Rebecca and a friend of ours saved my Soul, so that I could be reborn in a safe place," Katye said.
"That's the power of Gods! You are a Goddess?" the pixie exclaimed, looking at me.
"Something like that, but like Katye, I was reborn here. We're a long way from our old strength," I replied.
"So, that's why you are traveling with the Munhus."
"Munhus?" I asked.
"Magic-less," Katye answered.
"Ah, Fairy version of muggles," I chuckled.
"Actually, yeah, that's pretty accurate, and yes, Filigree, that's why we are traveling with them. They are our friends, and they were taken far away from their home, so we are trying to help them get back. They're good people that like to learn about the universe and different cultures so that they can live in harmony with everyone."
"Okay," she replied, kicking her legs back and forth while they hung off the side of the table.
Katye's expression softened as she watched the little pixie. I switched over to her couch and slid in next to her, giving her a kiss on the cheek. She sighed softly and leaned into my embrace as she rested her head on my chest.
"It's almost like having a kid around again," I said, gently stroking her arm while holding her.
"Yeah," she agreed with a sigh.
"Are you going to bring her to the party?"
"I don't know. Would you like to go to the party, Filigree?"
"What's a party?" the pixie asked.
I chuckled, "A party is a gathering of friends with food, drinks, and sometimes music and dancing."
"I've never eaten food before! Corporeal forms are strange."
"Just wait, little one, most pixies and fairies love sweet treats," Katye teased with a smile.
"Will there be 'sweet treats' at the party?"
"All sorts of different treats; I'm sure you'll find something you like."
"Then I will go."
"There will be a lot of people for you to meet and you will have to be on your best behavior even if they are Munhus. These people are our friends," Katye said firmly.
"If you trust them, I can trust them," Filigree agreed.
I chuckled, "Quick to change your mind, huh, kid?"
"I'm not a kid; I'm a pixie!" she pouted.
"Leave her alone, or I'll tell her to use you as target practice while we are onboard the ship," Katye threatened, sitting up straight.
"Meh, you're no fun," I teased.
"Come on, Filigree, I have some cooking to do, and we can see what you like while I work," Katye said then stood up.
The little pixie stood up on the table, then jumped into the air and flew over to Katye's shoulder, landing carefully. "What is cooking?"
I chuckled lightly as Katye walked over to the kitchen with the little pixie on her shoulder. While Katye and Filigree cooked, I decided to take a shower and change into something that was not a uniform. Typically, that was what most of us wore since we usually only left our ship for our duty shifts, but this was the first casual event since we had joined, so I wanted to be comfortable. I recycled my damaged jacket and then replicated myself a tank top, a pair of black, soft leather pants, and a red, silk button-down shirt.
When I stepped out into the main room again, Raven and Echo had returned and met the newest member of our crew. Filigree had taken a liking to Nyka and was curled up asleep on the fox's side. I walked up to the kitchen island, which was the furthest that the three of us were allowed to go if Katye was cooking, and then gave Raven a kiss on the cheek.
"Is your head doing better?" I asked.
"Yeah, and thankfully, Filigree's voice is cute," Raven replied.
"So, when did the ball of curiosity fall asleep?"
"About five minutes after Echo and Nyka returned. She and the fox were instant friends and were bouncing all over the room as they played together. It's going to take some time before she adapts to her physical body and its limitations," Katye replied.
"Damn, I'm sorry I missed that," I chuckled.
"Well, I'm almost done, so why don't you two get changed as well? Becca can start packing up the dishes while we wait for you," Katye suggested.
Raven and Echo nodded their heads, before walking to the bedroom together. I started picking up the completed dishes and placed them inside a basket, then added some bottles of wine that I had diluted to make them drinkable for normal people. Katye finished topping the last of the plates of pastries, before she covered them with a metal cover and sealed the container.
"You look good in some normal clothes for a change," Katye remarked as she passed me the container.
She had changed while I had been showering. She wore a dark violet shirt that was open in the back which showed the tattoos down her spine. Her pants were form fitting and navy in color, but I could not recognize the material they were made of.
"And you are absolutely stunning," I teased with a smile. "Echo and I are going to have to beat Tom off of you, and maybe some others on the crew."
"I'm sure sticking close to you two will be all the intimidation that anyone needs," she chuckled, then leaned forward and kissed me.
She placed a hand on my cheek, and it was like the world melted away for a moment. The influence of my past life with her was unmistakable, but that made it hard to sort out what feelings were mine and what were Dystina's. Either way, I could not imagine my life without her now that we were together.
Raven and Echo walked out of the bedroom, both looking beautiful. Raven was wearing a low-cut, forest-green top and black slacks that moved with each of her steps. Echo had on a leather hide vest with Azgeda designs emblazoned on it over a rough white shirt and a similar pair of black, soft leather pants like the ones that I was wearing.
Katye plucked a roban berry from the vine that I had grown to make my Spirit Wine then walked over to the sleeping pixie. "Wake up, little one."
Filigree yawned as she sat up and stretched. Katye placed the little berry that looked like a blackberry, only bright blue in color, in the pixie's lap, and her eyes grew wide. Without warning, she started tearing into the berry that was a quarter of her size and ate it quickly.
"Mana fruit, even artificial ones, are good for her development, but they also give her a lot of energy to stay up through the party," Katye explained. "I can help with the vines, but we'll need to start a few more."
"That's fine," I replied.
When Filigree finished the berry, Nyka licked her clean, making the pixie squeal and laugh. She rode on the fox's back as my little crew left our ship and headed towards the mess hall. Neelix and Kes were still putting the finishing touches on the decorations, but we had come early to help. I placed the basket of food down, and started unpacking while they joined us at the main buffet table.
"Happy Prixin, my friends," Neelix said joyously.
"Happy Prixin, Neelix," Katye replied. "I have someone new to introduce to you and Kes. Filigree, come here."
Katye held out a palm as Filigree hopped off Nyka and flew over to her hand.
"Filigree, this is Neelix and Kes. Kes and Neelix, this is Filigree, the newest member of the Fae Dragon," Katye introduced. "I work with Kes in Sick Bay, and Neelix is our chef and Chief Morale officer."
"You both feel like sunshine," Filigree said with a big smile.
"Why thank you," Kes replied.
"The traditional greeting when you are introduced to other people is 'It's nice to meet you'," Katye said gently.
"Oh, sorry... It's nice to meet you," the pixie said.
"She is a pixie; a race that often joins with members of ours. She doesn't know much of the world that we live in, but she is still very intelligent and kind-hearted," Katye explained.
"Well, it is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Filigree," Neelix said with a smile.
We all helped get the last of things ready, setting up the decorations, the food, and the drinks. People started to trickle in an hour or so later, and the party officially started half an hour later. All of the bridge crew was in attendance, so with Kes and Neelix, all of the stars of the show, except the Doctor, had gathered together.
Neelix gave the traditional salutation at the start, which included an extremely long list of family members, but no one seemed to mind. After that, the party officially started and people started to break into different groups to chat, my own crew included. It was nice to interact with the Voyager crew in a relaxed setting like this and it helped my group seem more normal, despite the pixie and the three-tailed fox that followed us around.
It took him a while to approach us, but I had felt his eyes on us for most of the evening, which was unusual for Harry. He had also not interacted much with other people, even Tom who could always pull him into something. It was only when Katye and I had moved into a corner by ourselves that he finally came forward.
"Sorry to bother you, Captain, Commander," Harry said.
"Harry, we aren't in uniform, so ranks don't apply right now," Katye said with a smile.
"Yes, of course," Harry replied still with a bit of awkwardness. "Would it be possible to ask you a few questions about this morning?"
"Sure, I know that it was probably hard to understand everything without knowing about elemental creatures like we do," Katye agreed.
"Elemental creatures? So, that's what they were?"
"Yes, two Yang sprites had been beamed onboard, so their parent, the Yang Spirit, chased after them. Unfortunately, the holo-deck is very compatible with their energy, so he entered there and took you."
"Yang? Like Yin and Yang?"
"Yep, most mythology has more truth behind it than people know," I replied, before taking a sip of wine.
"Then it really was a jinwu?!?"
"Jinwu?" Katye asked, confused.
"Chinese mythological bird of the sun, possibly a god, but I'm better with Greek, Egyptian, and Norse mythology than Chinese," I explained.
"Yes, that's right. Ten jinwus served Fuxi and settled on separate suns," Harry agreed. "Was this one of those suns?"
"Possibly, but I doubt it. He was quite young, so at most, he was a sprite when that myth was created, but that isn't to say that there wasn't a True Spirit that came to Earth at some point. There are hundreds of ways that sprites can evolve, and a True Spirit like what you saw was just one possibility," Katye explained.
"Then what all is real? Why haven't your people told the Federation about beings like that?" he asked.
"Why doesn't the Federation share its technology?" Katye retorted. "They are not technology, of course, but the underlining principle is the same. If someone could understand and figure out how to form contracts with sprites, as I did, they would be able to develop abilities similar to us. Not only is that dangerous for the general balance of power throughout the universe, but Filigree's life is now tied to mine. She must follow my orders and, if I die, she dies. I only agreed to join with her because she could gain a lot more with my assistance than she would be able to achieve on her own, which is also why the Yang Spirit pushed so hard for her to serve me. Just because I won't take advantage of the contract between us, some people would; even other Vazukuru have been known to hunt them down and, for lack of a nicer way to phrase it, enslave innocent elemental creatures."
"Oh, I see what you mean," he agreed.
"Elemental creatures gain strength and intelligence over a long period time, so it is better that they are simply left alone in their natural environments."
Harry nodded his head, and said, "Thank you for explaining."
"Of course," Katye replied.
He smiled, and then excused himself. The conversation seemed to take the weight off his mind, and he was able to interact with other people easier now that he was not distracted by it anymore. I finished my drink and gave Katye a look that made her chuckle.
"You aren't the only one who has learned how to improvise an explanation on the spur of the moment," Katye remarked with a smirk.
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