The best kind of surprise

Posted on Fri Mar 28th, 2025 @ 5:11am by Lieutenant JG Deezell Vox & Admiral Deela T'Lar & Lieutenant Commander Ariana Monroe-Wayne & Lieutenant JG Jaxon Ruveer

2,778 words; about a 14 minute read

Mission: Episode 120 - Guardian at the Gate
Location: USS Essex
Timeline: Current

With the Essex underway Ariana was doing her best to settle into her temporary quarters, but without Cameron and her children it was going to seem pretty lonely. She was just replicating herself something to drink when she sensed someone approaching the door.

Dee was outside the door to Ariana's quarters, she was still freaking out. She pressed the door chime, her hand shaking slightly.

Answering the door Ariana gave Dee a concerned look. “Dee, what on Earth is it!?” She motioned Dee to enter waiting for the door to close behind her before elaborating on her statement. “Your emotions are all over the place, what’s wrong?”

Dee entered the room, the door closed behind her.

"I'm freaking out right now." She replied. She saw a seat and sat down.

"This has to stay between us for the moment, okay?" She added.

Ariana nodded as she took a seat. “Of course, what is said here stays here. Now what’s wrong?”

"We are away from the station, I am away from Jaxon, this mission could get very dangerous and.... Why now. " She paused, looked straight at Ariana and without blinking....

"I'm pregnant"

Ariana gave Dee a comforting smile. “Dee that’s wonderful, Congratulations!” She offered a brief hug before settling down again. “I take it this wasn’t planned? How far along are you?”

Dee smiled at her friend's happiness at her news and the hug. "Definitely not planned. I don't actually know how far along I am. I could do with doing another test to be sure and one that can tell me that. Can you help me there?" Dee asked.

“Sure” Ariana nodded, getting up to go to her bag which was still packed. “I should have…” she rummaged through the bag. “Here we go!” She pulled out a medical tricorder. “I keep one of these handy just in case any of my patients have a funny turn.” She offered a smile. “Hold still and I’ll run a quick scan.”

"Okay." Dee stayed still as Ariana scanned her.

“Here we go” Ariana held the tricorder for Dee to see the results as well. “According to this you’re just under 4 weeks, 3 weeks and 5 days to be precise.” She smiled warmly. “I think I remember Rae telling me that Vox has been a parent before? Obviously not you though.”

"That's right. Azrel and Lerani both had children. Ariana, I'm shaking. This is scary.".

Putting down the tricorder Ariana offered an understanding gaze. “I know it’s a lot to take in, is there any particular reason why you’re so afraid? Does Jaxon know?”

"I'm not sure why I'm like this. He doesn't know. I found out only today, after we left the station. I think it's my fault. I have been dealing with a lot recently with work and my experiences in the mirror universe and I may have forgotten to take my birth control. I'm feeling a little calmer now I'm here with you. I'm going to have to tell the Admiral aren't I?"

“Definitely” Ariana nodded. “It’s for your safety as much as it is for your baby. I know it’s scary, hell I might be joining you eventually Cameron is talking about us having another baby!” She grinned. “Anyway right now what I need to know is what you want? How do you feel about being a mother?”

"I've thought about it since I saw the first test result. I've remembered the experiences of Lerani and Azrel. The joy, the testing times but throughout it all, the proudness of their children as they grew up and achieved their endeavours. Oh man, I'm getting excited."

She had a huge smile on her face. She put a hand on her tummy.

"I think the Stations XO is in charge of the station so I will have to advise Bremer himself. I know it sounds silly but would let me use your terminal here so your with me?

Ariana smiled. “Why don’t you inform Admiral T’Lar? She is in command aboard ship, plus she’s station First Officer as well. You can still call her from here, or we could go and speak to her together if you want?”

"Let's go see her in person. I think that would be better."

Ariana nodded. “Sounds good to me. Do you want to go right now, or would you like to relax a little first? Actually I know very little about Trill pregnancies so I’d like to hear more about it.”

"Let's relax for a moment and then go see Admiral T'Lar. As for Trill pregnancies, they are very similar to humans except for a few notable differences. One of them, for example, is a heighten sense of smell. Another is a faint red line around my markings, see?" See points to the sides of her face.

Ariana had to look closely but she nodded as she saw the red markings. “Fascinating. So your gestation period is around nine months?”

"Thereabouts. It's closer to 9 and a half but not quite. Average is around 42 weeks. Oh, that's a worrying thought. " She added. "Hmmm"

“Why is that?” Ariana gave her friend a curious look.

"My father is a twin. That's what I meant. "

“Ohh I see” Ariana nodded. “Well that’s something you’ll find out when you have a more detailed scan. It’s too early to tell right now.”

Dee and Ariana finished their chat and headed to the ready room of Admiral T'Lar.

Dee turned to Ariana. "Thanks for coming with me. I appreciate this."

“That’s what I’m here for either as a Counsellor, or simply your friend” Ariana smiled warmly.

"Thanks Ariana, I do appreciate this. "Dee reached out a rang the door chime outside the Admiral's ready room.

Deela was going over the information about the mission at hand. She hated dealing with anything Borg related. She also was going over the crew manifest. She was amused how three fourths of the crew was of the female persuasion, wondering if Bremer planned it that way. She was okay with that. She let out a slight chuckle. She looked up towards the door when the chime rang, "Enter."

The door opened and Dee and Ariana entered the room.

"Hello Admiral, can I have a moment of your time?" Dee asked, keeping herself as calm as she could. She was feeling better since talking with Ariana.

Deela smiled at the two. She hated formalities, especially in her ready room, "Dee, Ariana, yes you may." She motioned to the chairs in front of her, "Please, have a seat." She waited for them to sit down, meanwhile, observing Dee. She could see one particular detail about her appearance that was different. And, she could sense that Dee's emotions were heightened. She leaned forward in her seat, her hands folded together on her desk, "So, how can I help you?"

Dee smiled, nervously. " Well, you see... I'm pregnant. I found out just a couple of hours ago. So, I thought it wise to let you know, considering our current assignment. "

"Well first of all, congrats!" Deela continued, "I do have to ask. How are you feeling? Is there anything that might keep you from doing your job? I mean, I remember when I was pregnant with my first child, I was sick for weeks on end. Even traveling on a ship made me sick. I ended up taking a LOA for a couple of months."

"That sounds bad, Admiral. I am feeling quite well actually. I don't feel any sickness at the moment but the heighten sense of smell is a little difficult to get use to. For example, I am pretty certain that in your bag over there in the far corner is a ripe orange. "

Deela laughed, "You'd be right." She stood up, went to her bag and showed her the orange. She put it back and sat down again, "Okay. If that's the only thing so far, I don't see your pregnancy being a problem this early in it. If you were security or anything that could be physically dangerous for you, I'd send you back to Starbase 400 on a shuttle but since you are in Engineering, I think you should be okay. All I ask is you keep me updated if anything changes."

"Absolutely Admiral I will keep you posted. I am approximately 3 weeks 5 days" Dee commented.

Ariana smiled warmly. "We did a quick scan before we came just to be 100% sure. Dee was feeling a bit wound up, so I came along for moral support."

"I am calmer now but my mind is still kind of racing. This wasn't planned at all and I have no idea how Jaxon is going to react. I am worried." Dee commented.

"I sensed that when you walked in," she said, leaning back in her chair with a gentle smile. "It's understandable. Life has a way of surprising us when we least expect it. But remember, you have support. You're not alone in this." She paused, reminiscing. "I remember when I told my late husband I was pregnant. His anxiety went through the roof. Eventually, he came around. When he found out it was a boy, he was ecstatic. I'm sure Jaxon will be shocked at first, but if he really loves you, he'll accept the responsibility. After all, it takes two. You didn't make this baby by yourself." She didn't know Jaxon well enough to be certain, but she hoped her words would bring Dee some comfort.

Dee smiled. "I love him so much. He means everything to me. He probably will be shocked but I think he will soon become excited as I am starting to now. I was talking to Adriana earlier about a slight worry. My father and his brother are twins."

"Don't worry about the 'what ifs' right now. But if you're really worried about it, Dr. Maab I'm sure would be happy to check for you. I've known her for a long time and requested her for this mission." Dee assured her.

"Yeah you're right. Focus on the here and now. Usually in Trill pregnancies there is a sign that could suggest multiple babies. Usually the heighten sense of smell stays pretty constant but should there be twins or more, it often becomes more sensitive and a particular smell becomes almost nauseating to the mother to be." Deezell explained.

"Okay. Well, it's up to you. Again, let me know if your condition changes." Deela smiled at the two.

"I will. Thanks Admiral." Dee replied. She turned to Ariana "I got a desire for strawberries."

"That actually sounds good but I have a ship to run." She had one more thing since Ariana was there, "Oh Ariana, before I forget. What I'm going to ask isn't something that is normally done but our XO had to leave for some mysterious reason. So, I need someone to replace him. As once a Counselor myself, I was wondering if you could fill in?" Deela felt she would be good at it and right now, there wasn't anyone else she could spare.

“Me?” Ariana gave Deela a surprised look. “Of course, I’m a little rusty but I’m sure it’ll come back to me.” She smiled warmly.

"Good. See you on the bridge." Deela smiled.

Dee smiled. "Now it's my turn. You got this, Sir. " She commented, standing to attention in front of her dear friend.

“At ease Dee, and please don’t call me Sir” Ariana grinned. “It’s Ariana, or Commander when we’re on the bridge. Sir is for men in my opinion.”

Deela just shook her head as she laughed softly.

"Okay Ariana. I suppose I best get to engineering. I promise to go to sickbay if I feel the need to. "

"I'm holding you to that." Deela watched them leave.

Dee headed out of the ready room, chuckling as she heard Deela's comment, and on towards engineering. Upon arrival, as acting Chief Engineer, she stepped into the CEOs office. Logging on to the terminal she sent the following video message back to Starbase 400.

"Hey Jax, it's me. I had to get in touch as something has happened." She leaned in so the camera could get a close up of her Trill spots with the red outline. "I'm pregnant. Three weeks 5 days to be exact. I know we didn't plan this so I hope you're ok with it. Let me know soon. I love you." She blew him a kiss and ended the transmission.

She left the office and got to work with the other engineers to keep the ship ticking over.

She stood in the centre of engineering. She sniffed the air, looked around, zoned in on Ensign Lewis, who was on the upper level and several feet away. "Hey Lewis, go easy on the aftershave. It's to attract someone not put them unconscious. "

Lewis looks down from the Upper level. "Ok Ma'am. "

Another officer, also a Trill walked passed Dee whispering under his breath, 'someone is pregnant '

With her new duties as First Officer Ariana had decided to take a walk around, dropping into engineering just in time to hear Dee’s comment. “You weren’t kidding about the sense of smell were you?” She offered Dee a wry smile. “Just thought I’d take a quick tour and see how things are going down here.”

"Ha, no I wasn't. It's nice aftershave as well but I think he's got a little too much on. " Dee replied.

Ariana grinned. “So how are things here? Are we ready for our little adventure?”

"Absolutely. She's ready to fly. Thanks again for being there to support me today. I really do appreciate it. I've not heard from Jaxon yet, though, so still a little apprehensive about that."

“I wouldn’t worry just yet, he’s probably busy working right now” Ariana offered a warm smile. “If you need anything you know where to find me.”

"Yeah, you're probably right. He does enjoy his work. I will come a looking for you if I need you. But, yes, engineering is good to go. " She smiled. Giving a thumbs up.

“Excellent! Keep up the good work Lieutenant” Ariana grinned before she nodded and headed on her way.

Location: USS Saratoga, Bridge

Jax was working on the USS Saratoga, even though she was docked for the moment he was running a diagnostic program on the navigational system. The terminal next to his station beat, he saw a message from Dee. The message was marked personal, and since he was the only person on the Saratoga or at least on the bridge he decided to play the message while sitting at the helm station.

He was a little taken by the news, he was grateful that he was sitting down cuz if he wasn't he probably would have lost his balance at the sudden realization. His first thought was how did this happen? You do is she supposed to be on birth control. Second thought was was his intentional? And then the third thought in the more dominating thought was, who cares this is a joyous moment.

In a short amount of time to get processed his whole feelings, even though he didn't want children someday he didn't think it was going to be today. He wanted to see her but he knew that she was on assignment. He debated about saying anything in response. He didn't want to make her least focus of her duties. He also realized if he didn't say something it would probably make her least focus of her duties. So reluctantly he decided to send a message. He wished they could have talked about this in person.

“Computer open a communications message for Lieutenant Deezell Vox aboard the USS Essex.” Jax called out as he started to straighten his posture and did a video transmission.

“That is wonderful news Dee, I'm a little surprised but I'm very happy that we're going to become a family. When you get home we should go out and celebrate. I love you so much and I want you to focus on the mission and return home to me soon.” Jax said at the end of the communications message and then transmitted it to the USS Essex.

Dee sat back from the desk in the CEOs office after playing Jaxon's message. She was certainly relieved. She took note of what Jaxon said about focusing on the mission at hand and returning safe. She got up from her chair and headed back out to Main Engineering.

Off.

RSS Feed