Kodie

Posted on Sun Feb 15th, 2026 @ 3:20am by Lieutenant JG Kate Kono & Lieutenant JG Benjamin "Ben" Dalton

2,063 words; about a 10 minute read

Mission: Not All Orders Are Easy
Location: Kate and Ben's Quarters
Timeline: current

Kate keyed in her access code and the door to her quarters slid open with a pneumatic hiss. At first glance, nothing seemed amiss. But as she stepped across the threshold, the hairs on the back of her neck prickled. The mahogany coffee table sat two centimeters too far from the sofa. Her antique brass lamp tilted at an unfamiliar angle. The Andorian crystal figurine faced east instead of north. Every object had been meticulously returned—but not quite right. Kate maintained a casual demeanor, humming softly while her fingers closed around the cold metal of the Type-One Phaser concealed in her desk drawer. This had all the hallmarks of a "reset"—the telltale aftermath of a covert search operation. An untrained eye would notice nothing, but to Kate, with her extensive intelligence training, the room screamed of intrusion. Her thoughts flashed to Ben, but discipline took precedence. First, she needed to clear each room, methodically and thoroughly.

Silence dragged on, slowly laboriously until the door to their bedroom opened and Ben stepped out and into the hallway, closing the door behind him. A bright grin on his face, "Hiya sweetie! Who are you trying to sneak up on?" He asked seeing Kate's determined and cautious look.

Kate pocketed the phaser, buried both hands in her uniform pockets, and flashed a knowing smile.

"Nothing much. Just noticed our quarters look like they've been disassembled and reassembled by someone with questionable spatial awareness. Flash-banged, maybe?" She arched an eyebrow at Ben while crossing the room, then froze mid-stride.

A black-and-white cloud of fur with impossibly alert blue eyes studied her from across the room. Those eyes—calculating, almost human—triggered an immediate memory of Wolfie. Kate's vision blurred with tears as she whipped her head toward Ben, mouth agape.

"You didn't—" she whispered. "You did!"

The Siberian Husky tilted its head at precisely the angle that suggested not just comprehension but amusement. Its ears perked forward with deliberate attention as Kate dropped to her knees. The magnificent creature approached with dignified steps, sitting before her with the ceremonial poise of royalty granting an audience. When their eyes met, Kate felt an uncanny connection—as though the dog was consciously evaluating whether she was worthy of its loyalty.

Ben was about to reply when Kate's attention was drawn to the dog, a Siberian Husky to be precise. he was silent as Kate and the dog studied each other then he couldn't be quiet any longer. "Surprise darling! I knew how much you cared for Wolfie when you were on the wild west planet and decided you, we needed a pet and here he is. Do you like him? He seems quite taken with you."

Kate rose from her crouch and flung her arms around Ben, her eyes bright with excitement.

"This is incredible! How in the galaxy did you find a dog out here? Space isn't exactly known for its pet shops!" She dropped back down, her face level with the husky's ice-blue eyes. "You're the most amazing thing I've seen since we left Earth!"

The husky tilted his head at a comical angle, ears flopping to one side. His mouth opened in what could only be described as a goofy grin, and he let out a soft, squeaky attempt at a howl that sounded more like a question mark than a wolf's call. Then, as if embarrassed by his own voice, he sneezed and shook his head, fur rippling in waves.

Ben hugged her tightly, he was glad, overjoyed that Kate liked the dog and the dog seemed quite taken with her.

He smiled at her, :I am an Intel agent and well I made some calls, contacted the right people, made the necessary arrangements and here he is! Here he is. If you don't like him, I guess we can send him back." Ben teased.

When the dog attempted to howl and then sneezed, Ben chuckled, "He's still working on his howl. He hasn't quite gotten it down yet. But he's working on it."

"Still in the puppy phase, I see," Kate said, her fingers finding that sweet spot behind the dog's triangular ears. The husky's eyes half-closed in bliss. She noticed a silver tag dangling from his azure collar, catching the light. "Kodie," she read aloud.

At the sound of his name, Kodie's jaws worked excitedly, producing a series of yips and growls that rose and fell with an almost conversational cadence.

"Well hello there, Kodie. I'm Kate," she offered with a smile.

The husky extended his paw with deliberate precision, tapping her knuckles in what could only be described as a calculated greeting. Kate's eyes darted to Ben, wide with astonishment.

"Is this a normal husky?" she whispered. "Or have dogs secretly been evolving while we weren't paying attention?"

Throughout their exchange, Kodie sat with perfect posture, his head canting thoughtfully from side to side. His throat produced a symphony of soft whines and rumbles that seemed to mimic the rhythm of human speech with uncanny accuracy.

Ben grinned, "As you can see Kodie is highly intelligent and even though still in puppy stage, he is exceptionally well behaved though he does have his moments of wild energy." Ben said and then explained, "It's why you noticed things being slightly off in the leaving room. Kodie was getting rid of some excess energy. But otherwise he is great. he listens, loves to get hos ears scratched as you can see as well as get his stomach rubbed and he's a talker. As you can see and hear."

Kate's eyes sparkled with amusement as she glanced between Ben and the Huskey, whose tail thumped rhythmically against the deck plating.

"Nothing a holodeck simulation can't remedy when he exhibits excess energy patterns, isn't that right, Kodie?" Kate said, her voice lifting with the practiced inflection of someone accustomed to addressing both senior officers and canine companions. The dog's ears perked forward, head tilting at the unfamiliar terminology. Kate made a mental note to add "holodeck" to his command vocabulary alongside "walkies" and "nutritional supplement."

Kate paused, brow furrowing in consideration. "I should implement security protocols for the replicator systems. This good boy appears quite intelligent—wouldn't want him accessing the molecular food functions while we're on duty rotation."

"Has his biological waste management been addressed?" she inquired, suppressing a smile. "I presume we're not expecting him to utilize the external forcefield perimeter for waste jettison procedures."

Ben nodded in agreement . "I think Kodie would enjoy the holodeck a great deal. he could burn off all that excess energy he'll build up. Putting security protocols for the replicator can't hurt. As you said he is quite intelligent."

Ben nodded again, "Yes his waste management has been addressed and taken care of so no coming home to accidents... unless he throws up. Which I hope never happens."

Kate knelt beside Kodie, her fingernails finding that sweet spot behind his triangular ears. "Well aren't you convenient—a pup with no messy business to clean up around the ship!" The husky's ice-blue eyes half-closed in bliss as his pink tongue lolled sideways from his muzzle, a thread of drool catching the light as it descended toward the blue carpteted floor.

Ben chuckled at the sight before him. "You keep doing that Kate and you'll have a friend for life and you'll never get any work done. However right now, let's get something to eat for all of us."

Kate chuckled softly as she gave the silver-and-charcoal Siberian Husky one final scratch behind his pointed ears. Kodie's ice-blue eyes tracked her every movement, his head tilting inquisitively as her fingers danced across the replicator's illuminated panel. The machine hummed to life, particles shimmering and coalescing into steaming dishes. Kodie's expression transformed—eyes widening to perfect circles, pink tongue lolling comically from the side of his muzzle. Kate balanced the array of plates along her arms and delivered them to the polished table. To her astonishment, Kodie delicately climbed onto a chair, sitting upright with his paws resting primly on the edge.

"Now that's impressive!" Kate said, stifling another laugh. "Though I suspect once that bowl hits the table, he'll devour it like a Klingon's standard table manners."

"He is one impressive dog, I'll say this for him." Ben replied observing Kodie climbing and now sitting in a chair like he was king of the road. I am interested in seeing how he eats."

Kodie meanwhile looked between Kate and Ben his look seeming to convey *ENough talkm where's the food?"

Kate replicated a bowl of chopped steak and rice. When she set it on the table, the husky's ears perked forward like radar dishes. Kodie lunged, his broad chest knocking against the table edge as he buried his muzzle in the food, inhaling more than chewing, his tail a metronome of delight. His paws splayed on the chair seat for leverage as he wolfed down every morsel, leaving a clean bowl in seconds. With a satisfied grunt, he leapt down and trotted to a water dish Ben had prepared, lapping noisily with his pink tongue hanging sideways.

"Well, he eats and drinks like a dog and he likes steak and rice." Ben chuckled as he watch Kodie devour his food and then turn his attention to having some water. "I wonder if he would like fish and chicken as well. We'll have to try those next. Give him some variety in his meals."

Kate giggled and danced her fingers across the replicator's panel, conjuring a veritable doggy smorgasbord. She presented Kodie with a wooden plank that looked like it belonged in a hipster restaurant, now laden with a culinary obstacle course. The Siberian Husky's ice-blue eyes ping-ponged between morsels, his head tilting with scholarly consideration. Kate clutched her sides watching his canine connoisseur routine. Kodie's investigation was methodical—whiskers twitching, snout hovering millimeters above each offering before making his selections. The steak vanished first (naturally), followed by fish, chicken, and—bizarrely—the Twizzler, which he slurped like spaghetti. The broccoli went down with reluctant chomps. But the carrot? Kodie sat before it with drooping eyelids, fixing Ben and Kate with a look that clearly said, "I may be a dog, but I'm not desperate."

Ben chuckled at Kodie's expression. "Kodie doesn't seem to be a carrots kind of dog. He obviously likes, meat, chicken, fish a Twizzler and will eat broccoli under protest. I wonder if would like shrimp?"

Kate punched in her code on the replicator's glowing panel, scrolling through the protein menu until she found "Shrimp - North Atlantic." The machine hummed softly, materializing a small pile of pink crescents on a ceramic dish. She knelt beside Kodie, the silver-gray Siberian husky with ice-blue eyes that seemed to catch every movement. His black nose twitched as she set the plate before him, nostrils flaring at the briny scent. For one deliberate moment, he studied his offering, then with lightning precision, his jaws snapped forward. The shrimp vanished in three efficient bites, followed by a satisfied smacking of his tongue across his muzzle.

Kate raised her brow at Ben and nodded, "Yep..."

Ben chuckled as he watched Kodie devoured the latest food offering of shrimp. "Well, he knows what he likes which is just about everything except carrots and broccoli. Think we have a meat and potato dog here."

Ben looked at Kate, "I bet he would like salmon as well but we'll try that next time, don't want to overload him on new foods all at once."

Kate nodded, her eyes brightening. "Makes sense. A dog bred for those frigid Alaskan riverbanks probably has salmon in his DNA." She glanced at the husky puppy sprawled across Ben's feet, its silver-gray coat rising and falling with each breath. "We'll try fish next time, but let's be careful—I want those blue eyes to still see his paws when he looks down." She wrapped her arms around Ben, breathing in the scent of her lover. "This is the most perfect gift anyone's ever given me," she whispered against his shoulder. "He's already part of our family."

Ben wrapped his arms around Kate and kissed her forehead. "Agreed. We don't want tubby husky," He chuckled as he he squeezed her close to him. "You are welcome darling and yes he certainly is part of the family.'

 

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