Born to Rom

Star Traks: Boldly Gone
Episode name
Season	10
Episode number	5
Writer(s)	Alan Decker, Anthony Butler
Year	2503
Stardate	179348
Chronology
Previous in series	Consequences You Otherwise Avoid [BG]
Next in series	Going, Going, Gone... [BG]
Previous in timeline	Consequences You Otherwise Avoid [BG]
Next in timeline	Going, Going, Gone... [BG]

While Captain Bain is away on leave, Commander Vioxx is left in command and forced to face something that his years of training and experience in the Romulan Imperial Navy in no way prepared him for. Meanwhile, Commander Prosak has to deal with a crisis of her own, this one more of the existential variety.

Summary

While Captain Reginald Bain and Rosalyn Bain are off the USS Anomaly, taking Dr. Fred Nooney to his new post on a cruise ship on Pacifica before enjoying a vacation of their own, Commander Vioxx is left in charge of the Anomaly. The ship is making supply runs to far-flung Federation outposts along Alpha/Gamma Quadrant border.

When they arrive at the Plait Outpost, Vioxx asks the outpost administrator, Dr. Akintola, why they need more replicators. Akintola explains that an energy wave struck the outpost a couple of weeks earlier and took out a number of their systems, including replicators. The wave originated in the Gorman Nebula, about 100 light years away, and the nebula now appears to be shrinking. Akintola asks Vioxx to take the Anomaly to investigate.

The Anomaly arrives at the nebula just as the last of it is disappearing, sucked into a central point; although, the Anomaly’s sensors do not detect anything to explain it, such as a micro black hole. Once the nebula is gone, all that is left in its place is a spherical beige blob about a meter in diameter comprised of an unknown substance. The blob suddenly scans the Anomaly and looks through the ship’s systems and databanks; although, Sub-Commander Remax has no idea how that is possible. It then hails the ship, making an awful noise over the bridge speakers. Vioxx tries to respond, but the blob interrupts with an excited “Daddy!” and giggling. Vioxx immediately calls for a staff meeting with the senior officers.

Vioxx and Remax explain the situation to Lieutenant Commander Tovar, Lieutenant Shelly Marsden, and Dr. Natalia Kasyov. Marsden suggests naming the blob Neb, which sticks. Remax wants to kill Neb before they grow, but Tovar refuses, since Neb is an intelligent lifeform. Kasyov says that if Neb thinks Vioxx is their father, he needs to do some parenting. Vioxx has never had children and has no idea what to do. Neb, at least a piece of them, wanders into the briefing room in the form of a blobby toddler about half a meter high. Neb asks their “Daddy” what he is doing, and Vioxx comms the bridge for a status on the sphere outside the Anomaly. It is still there but growing. After asking a lot of “Why?” about everything Vioxx is doing, Neb yawns, and Tovar suggests Vioxx should put them down for a nap. Vioxx is going to put Neb in the brig, but Marsden and Kasyov tell him to take Neb to his quarters and sing them to sleep. Vioxx carries Neb to his quarters, realizing along the way that he has taken on a massive responsibility. If he messes Neb up, he has no idea what Neb is capable of.

In his quarters, Vioxx sings the only song he can come up with to Neb and ends up nodding off himself. He is awakened by Neb demanding that Vioxx play with them, only now Neb has grown to over a meter tall. Vioxx unsuccessfully tries to convince Neb to let him sleep by playing a game called “coma” and then, since he is hungry, tries to offer Neb dinner. Neb doesn’t want to eat and ends up having a tantrum. As Neb slams their fists against the floor, the entire Anomaly jolts and shakes from gravitation waves being emitted by the blob outside, which Kasyov has dubbed “Big Neb.” To calm Neb down and stop the gravitational wave assault on the Anomaly, Vioxx shows Neb how to use the holopod.

Vioxx arrives for his bridge shift the next morning, and Kasyov demands to know where Neb is. Vioxx says that they are fine and that Neb stayed in the holopod all night. Kasyov is upset and demands to know what kind of parent Vioxx is. Vioxx retorts that he isn’t one at all. He goes on to order her to give him a status on Big Neb, which has grown to twenty meters in diameter. She and Remax have concluded that Neb is not from this universe. They believe that the energy wave that hit Plait Outpost was an effect of Neb passing through a nanoscopic tear in spacetime.

Big Neb suddenly begins moving and plops down on top of the Anomaly’s saucer, completely covering the bridge’s transparent dome. Kasyov detects that Neb is reaching into their systems again just before the Anomaly launches into warp, makes a tight turn, then goes into anti-sing. Cabral comms the bridge to say that he last lost control of the anti-singularity drive and that he is having to compensate for whatever is in control to prevent the Anomaly from disintegrating.

Vioxx goes into the holopod to talk to Neb and finds himself standing on top of the Anomaly’s saucer as it rips through space at anti-sing speeds. Neb is now even taller and flying the ship from a recreation of the helm console mounted just behind the bridge dome. Thinking back on his relationship with his own father, Vioxx decides to try actually listening to Neb and letting Neb know that he is there for them. Neb is amazed by all the things that Vioxx did for them and introduced them to when they were little (Vioxx insists it was yesterday, but Neb ignores him).

Vioxx is able to convince them to relinquish control of the ship and go have lunch with him in the holo-mess in a recreation of a street café on Romulus that Vioxx remembers from his childhood. Vioxx and Neb talk, and several officers drop by to say hello and converse as well. By the end of the day, Neb is taller than Vioxx. Vioxx takes them to guest quarters, saying that is time for Neb to have their own space.

Commander Prosak, meanwhile, is still working through what she wants to do with her life. At the urging of Kasyov and Lieutenant Marsden, she seeks advice from various counselors and psychologists, both real and fictional, in her holopod. After seeing Dr. Linda Martin (from “Lucifer”), Dr. Frasier Crane (from “Cheers” and “Frasier”), Dr. Jennifer Melfi (from “The Sopranos”), Dr. Sigmond Freud, Counselor Kelly Peterman, and a Vulcan guru named Telvin. Prosak concludes that she needs to go full Romulan.

The next morning, Vioxx arrives on the bridge to find Prosak blaring terrible music from Kasyov. Prosak’s hair is spiked up, she’s now covered in tattoos, and she’s wearing a sleeveless metallic tunic and knee-high studded boots. Vioxx says that she looks like she is in a Romulan street gang. Big Neb is still on top of the saucer and now thirty meters in diameter. Vioxx relieves Prosak and has just settled into the command chair when Neb arrives on the bridge. They tell Vioxx that it’s time for them to leave because they need to get out and live their own life. Vioxx tells Neb to stay away from the Klingons and the Borg and to stay safe. And to comm him…if Neb wants to. Neb promises that they will. They then pull Vioxx into a hug and thank him. Neb vanishes from the bridge just as Big Neb lifts off from the saucer and sails away. Kasyov tells Vioxx that he did a good job with Neb. Vioxx isn’t so sure but admits that he is going to miss Neb.

Once Captain Bain returns, Vioxx goes to see him in his Captain’s Lounge. He asks Bain to have Starfleet keep a look out for Neb. They discuss parenthood, and Bain tells Vioxx that he did a great job with Neb and that he is Neb’s father in every way that matters. Vioxx thanks Bain and says that now he can stop worrying. Bain laughs and says, “No. Not even a little bit” before welcoming Vioxx to parenthood.

Featuring

• Captain Reginald Bain
• Commander Prosak
• Commander Vioxx
• Lieutenant Commander Tovar
• Lieutenant Shelly Marsden
• Sub-Commander Remax
• Dr. Natalia Kasyov
• Centurion Nortal
• Sub-Lieutenant Zantak
• Cabral

Author's Comments

This story might seem like an odd choice for the next to last Boldly ever. It’s a light character piece rather than some big build-up that ends in a cliffhanger. A lot of the reason for that goes back to what I said was our reasoning for not spending the whole run on the Dillon Consortium arc. We wanted the opportunity to tell other kinds of stories. The last one was a choose your own adventure, and this one was…well…this.

Anthony, Brendan, and I have all used Star Traks to talk about events in our lives. At its core, “Please Hold For Oblivion” was really my way of working through some of my feelings about being so far from the friends I’d made in college after I graduated and moved away for grad school. I won’t speak for Anthony and Brendan here, but I know some of the real life events they’ve used in their stories.

The A plot of “Born to Rom” is me being a bit wistful about the fact that both of my kids are adults now. Several of the bits between Vioxx and Neb are pulled straight from my own parenting experiences. I tried playing Coma with my kids when I was tired. It worked about as well for me as it did for Vioxx. And my son actually told me that I’d done too good of a job of raising him to be independent. As for the rocking a child to sleep while singing the same Pearl Jam song over and over, that also happened…to Anthony. He very kindly came over to watch my son when I needed to take my then wife to the emergency room for a really bad flu. When we came home, Anthony was rocking the boy and singing (Although, I can’t remember exactly which Pearl Jam song it was. He just said it was the only song he knew all the words to), and apparently had been there like that for a very long time. He was willing to stay there the whole night if he had to.

The B plot was us having fun with various therapists from TV, history, and other Traks stories. Hopefully it doesn’t matter too much if you aren’t familiar with them all. Really the end goal was to push Prosak to do something. Maybe not the right something. But it is something.

Links

Born to Rom