"Yeoman Jones: Dragon Trainer"
Posted on 04 Aug 2025 @ 7:13pm by Lieutenant Commander Riah Amberlyn XMD
2,292 words; about a 11 minute read
Mission:
Assignment: Arawyn
Location: Sickbay :: USS Arawyn
// Sickbay :: USS Arawyn //
“This is Tavri,” explained the workman. “He’s my emotional support animal. I’m working here on Arawyn with the computer interface design team from Dravelli Two. I am just not sure what’s wrong with him, but I don’t know who else to take him to.”
“And you are?” asked Riah Amberlyn.
“Oh, I’m sorry. I’m Joe Roseberry.” He noticed she seemed to be waiting for more information. “Oh. Yeah. I’m not Starfleet. We were sub-contracted because the original builder retired from Starfleet and now works for Micropoint Industries, on Dravelli Two. We are the experts in the technology and …”
“Okay, Joe," she interrupted gently, smiling. "Is Tavri aggressive?” she asked. “Can you take Tavri out of the basket safely?
“Oh, he’s never aggressive. You mean like biting you or attacking you?”
“Yes. Will I be able to handle him myself?” asked Riah.
“Oh yes. He’s gentle.” Joe unzipped the cloth basket in which he was carrying the animal. He and Riah looked at the animal, hunkered in the farthest corner of the rectangular, cloth basket. Joe didn’t immediately reach in to extract the creature who let out a hoarse croak followed by very clearly saying, “What the hell is this?”
Riah looked at Joe and around the room. That had been exactly what Riah was thinking.
The creature was built much like a small cat but had wings at his shoulder blades. The fur was short, fine textured and a lovely iridescent silver color. Tavri also had a long, sleek, matching silver tail.
“Well, you’re kind of cute?” said Riah, still cautious about sticking her hand into the basket. But she didn’t have to wait long before Tavri took matters into his own paws and hopped from the far corner of the basket, spread his wings as soon as possible, and aimed himself into Riah’s chest. She caught him as he proceeded to lick her face with a chubby blue tongue.
“Holy shit,” intoned Tavri.
Riah decided it was best to try to hold him like one might a large bird. To collapse his wings against his body and get a look at him at greater than 2 inches from her nose.
“Wow. He is tasting you already,” said Joe. “That’s good. That’s real good. He likes you.”
“Hopefully not for dinner,” said Tavri.
“Do you say everything I think?” asked Riah of the animal.
“Well, basically. They are mind readers,” reported Joe.
“Great pet!” intoned Riah, with more than a little sarcasm.
“Is this a Dravelli Dragon?” said Abby, an attractive, blonde nurse’s aide. “I’ve heard about them. They’re really unique. They’re telepathic. They can read your mind.”
“So I see,” replied Riah.
“Geez. You’re gorgeous,” said Tavri.
“Yes!” Joe said, leaping into the conversation, trying to hide his thoughts. “This is Tavri.”
“Gee you’re pretty,” said Tavri to the world at large. Everyone looked a little uncertain, wondering whose thoughts those had been.
“They are telepathic and talk, like a Terran parrot,” said the aide. “Be careful what you think around him. They mimic anything they pick up.”
“Great!” said Tavri.
“Ok. Let’s put Tavri on the table here. What are the symptoms you see?” asked Riah, not sure what she could do for a Dravelli Dragon, but willing to try.
“First patient… a dragon!!” chimed Tavri.
“This is interesting,” said Abby.
“Well, he usually talks more than he has been. I was afraid he was depressed or something. They get depressed when they don’t get enough social interaction time, and I’ve been working a lot, so I brought him to the ship today to try to help him feel more a part of things,” explained Joe. “Then he threw up breakfast. So, I thought maybe he was too excited by all the activity, so I replicated this basket to give him a little privacy. Then he well, pooped in there and I had to clean that up and give him a half bath, if you know what I mean…”
“Embaaaaarraaaassing,” said Tavri, drawing out the vowels.
“So, the feces was loose then?” asked Riah matter-of-factly. “What do you feed him?”
“A mixture of raw meat and sunflower seeds mostly,” said Joe.
“Is that their native diet? How long have you been feeding him that?” asked Riah.
“Well, I gave him some of my hamburger from the casino and had them replicate some seeds, but they had the hulls on them…”
“Lots of birds on a space station. Lots of birds,” delivered Tavri.
“Do you suppose the cooked meat might have made him sick?” asked Joe.
“Yaaaahhh,” said Tavri, again drawing out the vowels .
“I do,” replied Riah, aware her thoughts were again being mimicked. “You’ve taken him to an alien environment, from his perspective, fed him alien food, upset his whole routine. I’m not surprised he’s having such symptoms.”
“I shouldn’t have brought him. But he was depressed when I got back the last time I worked away from home,” lamented Joe.
“I shouldn’t have a pet,” said Tavri.
“But Dr Williams recommended it,” finished Joe.
Riah was having trouble not seeing the humor in this situation but tried to keep her thoughts professional, so they were not blasted throughout sickbay. So, she occupied her mind and her hand petting Tavri’s head. “You have an upset tummy, don’t cha fella? Well, we’ll ask Nurse Amy here to get you some ground meat from the replicator and sunflower seeds too, no hulls,” she looked at the nurse and nodded for her use the Department replicator. Amy hopped to it.
“Hope I can feed it,” said Tavri.
When Amy walked away, Tavri flared his wings and burst off the table in a flurry, out of Riah’s one hand and tried to follow Amy. However, he seemed to get disoriented by the ceiling supports and began to flap frantically at the upper corner by the ventilation grid. Then he turned and flashed into the supply room, where he landed on the top shelf.
“Oh Tavri. No-no,” called Joe, even as Tavri mimicked in his panicked tone.
“No-no. no-no!”
“Stay calm, stay calm,” implored Riah, trying to avoid further terrorizing the animal. “Just step back and let Joe go in there and talk him down. You can talk him down, Joe, can’t you?”
“Well, when he gets like this, he’s ….”
“He’s impossible. Impossible,” cried Tavri.
“He doesn’t really like me that well,” admitted Joe. “He was tasting you, maybe you can talk him down,” he suggested.
“Holy shit,” said Tavri. “This is so Dravelli. I love it,” he continued to repeat the unspoken thoughts of people gathered, all peering in the doorway of the storage closet.
Tavri began picking one item at a time from the top shelf and gently pushing it over the edge. Riah rushed forward and caught the first box before it hit the floor but missed the second, which landed at her feet.
“Hope it wasn’t breakable,” shouted Tavri.
“What’s going on?” came a new voice in the small cluster of people. The voice belonged to a young, dark haired, dark eyed woman with Petty Officer insignia on her very prim uniform.
“An escaped Dravelli Dragon!” said the excited Aide.
“Really?” the woman responded, moving closer.
“I had one at home,” said Tavri.
“Who had one at home?” said Riah, turning to the group. Another box fell off the top shelf.
“I did. Yeoman Nital Jones,” she introduced herself. “My brother has one.”
“Good. Help. How do we catch it?” asked Riah.
“You just reach up and call it to your arm,” she replied. “What’s his name?”
“He’s Tavri, Tavri, Tavri,” said the creature, as everyone thought his name.
The crowd parted to allow her to enter the closet.
She lifted her arm up. “Come here, Tavri,” she coaxed softly, and Tavri reached out a paw and then flutter-jumped to her forearm.
“You’re so pretty,” said Tavri admiringly.
“Where’d you come from? You’re just scared. Let’s shoo all these people away and go sit out here,” said Yeoman Jones.
Riah and the others stood back while she passed through, the little animal licking her cheeks with obvious delight.
“I can’t have him anymore,” said Tavri in a thoroughly dejected tone.
“Who can’t have you?” asked Nital. “You have a home, surely.”
From across the room, Joe admitted, “I got him to be an emotional support animal, but so far, all he’s done is trigger my anxiety.”
“Ah, that’s sad,” said Tavri.
“You just have to get to know him,” suggested Nital gently.
“I’ve had him for about 4 months. Nothing has gotten better. I think I need a cat. I thought this would be the answer to my anxiety, but it’s not. He’s not, and he knows it and that makes it worse.”
“That’s right. Give him up when it gets inconvenient,” said Tavri.
Everyone looked around, wondering who’s voice he had chosen to mimic this time. But all just looked sad.
“They like a calm environment,” said Nital. “You brought him here? This is about the worst place for him.”
“That was your first mistake,” said Tavri.
“He was sick. Where was I supposed to take him?” Joe asked defensively.
“Gods your beautiful,” exclaimed Tavri. “Good question!”
It was a good question, because there was no better place. Dravelli Dragons were not uncommon, but rarely found on Starships, particularly long-distance ones. Veterinary care on long voyages was hard to come by, and not every CMO had a specialization in xeno-biology. She could manage the healthcare of a dog or a cat, or that sort of pet.
“In the future, may I suggest the vet on the Space Station,” said Riah.
“Yes Ma’am,” said Joe.
“And don’t switch up his diet suddenly like that. Makes him unhappy, and sick. And you don’t know if something will poison him,” the CMO added.
“Yes Ma’am.”
“Yeoman Jones, if you’ll put Tavri back in his basket, we can put Sickbay back in order. I’ll meet with you in my office in 15 minutes. I’m assuming you are here to check in.”
“Yes Ma’am.”
“Gods she is beautiful,” Tavri repeated then returned to licking Jones’ face.
Riah was surprised and grateful that Tavri seemed intent upon kissing his rescuer and not repeating her or anyone else’s private thoughts.
“Bad partner on a date,” said Tavri. Everyone laughed.
“I have food for Tavri,” announced Abby, the nurse who had been sent to replicate the uncooked meat and seeds.
“Food for Tavri. Food for Tavri,” the animal cheerfully repeated.
// CMO’s Office :: 15 minutes later //
“Petty Officer Nital Jones, reporting as requested, Ma’am.”
“Welcome to an average day in Sickbay, Petty Officer Jones. I think I shall call you Yeoman Jones, if that suits you.”
The young woman nodded with enthusiasm. “Yes, Ma’am.”
“This was an interesting introduction. If you do as well with other intense situations, you can make a nice career as a medical admin,” said Riah with a warm smile.
“Thank you, Ma’am. He was just scared and disoriented,” said Nital.
“Clearly. I hope Joe has an easier time of it going forward.”
“Actually, he asked me to take the Dragon. He’s suffering from some anxiety disorder, and the Dragon was supposed to calm him down. Do you suppose I could keep him in my quarters?”
“I see. Well, that’s unusual for an enlisted, but I suppose if your roommate is okay with it, I have no objections. Might cause problems with that telepathic characteristic,” Riah cautioned.
“I don’t have a roommate, actually. Because I’m a personal assistant to a Senior Staff Officer, I’m allowed my own quarters. It’s small, still a two-person space, and if we were to become over-staffed, I’d have to accept a roommate, but for now, I’m good,” she replied softly. “Do I need to check with the Captain? Or do you do that for me?”
“Are you sure you want to keep this animal? He’s very intrusive, I’ve noticed,” the CMO queried.
“I’m used to it. My brother’s Dragon was always repeating the most outrageous things. But we got used to it and just laughed it off.”
“Mmmm, Bad news on a date though.” Riah continued to question the idea.
“I don’t take my dates to my quarters, Doctor.”
“Ok then. You have a dragon in your quarters from now on,” Riah laughed. “Don’t let it loose anywhere. I’m glad you already know how to take care of one.” She knew that if Tavri had been present, he would have reported her thoughts. Now I have to learn something about their care, too. “Do they need to be neutered?” she asked.
“Only if you have another dragon. They’ll either fight or mate depending upon their sex. They are kind of prolific, like cats or rabbits. Not as bad as Tribbles though. But the kits are really cute,” replied Nital.
They went on to discuss Riah’s expectations of a personal yeoman, as well as her possible duties in support of the department as a whole. The young woman was smart and amiable, quick minded and articulate. She showed promise.
“Welcome to Arawyn Medical. And no kits.” They both chuckled.
~~
LtCmdr Riah Amberlyn, XMD
Chief Medical Officer
USS Arawyn
&
Yeoman Nital Jones (NPC)
Various other NPCs apb Kate
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