Captain's Mess - Part 1

Posted on Mon Jan 20th, 2025 @ 10:29pm by Captain Daegan Baas & Ensign Konnibet S'ladaar [Baas] & Ensign Garath Of the House of Varal [Baas] & Petty Officer 2nd Class Sizia Sh'velihr [Baas] & Lieutenant Commander Ridge Maguire & Lieutenant Liam O'Riley & Lieutenant Morloth & Lieutenant Urushi Yaotome & Lieutenant Erin Cussen & Ensign J'Haz Sasha & Lieutenant Daniel Graham Dr & Ensign Stevie Thomas [O'Riley] & Chief Petty Officer Elena Graham (PhD) Dr & Julianna Raihan-Baas
Edited on on Wed Jan 22nd, 2025 @ 10:26pm

2,150 words; about a 11 minute read

Mission: A New Beginning
Location: Valhalla Lounge
Timeline: Evening

[Valhalla Lounge - 1750]

Daegan looked out over the massive buffet set up in the lounge with a grin. ~This should make an impression~, he thought to himself as final preparations were completed. Normally a Captain's mess was an exclusive, small gathering for senior staff and special guests but in this case It was open to all. Everyone had put in their fair share of effort to get the ship ready to launch that he wanted to show his appreciation.

Jules, the new civilian head of Intelligence for the ship, stood beside her husband, shaking her head. "That's a lot of food," she whispered. "Extra cardio for everyone this week." She leaned forward slightly and took an appreciative sniff. "But sooo worth it."

He watched her lean in to sample the aromas and suppressed a chuckle. It had been some time since he had bumped her into something in public, but now...well that would be very, captain-like. "Well that's what the gym's for or maybe swim some laps."

Jules nodded, her demeanor flawlessly professional, because years of deep undercover had perfected her skills, as she said quietly, "for some, but ... I prefer a different sort of workout."

Glancing up at the snicker from the steward on the other side of the table he took Jules by the arm as he walked her away whispering, "You're on."

Elena smiled up at him, deceptively demure, but the smolder in the depths of her eyes, reserved for her husband alone, told the truth of it. "Eat fast," she mouthed up at him.

Erin waited for Dan and Elena at the door. They arrived fairly late in the afternoon on the ship, so they had not had a chance to settle in much. She wanted to take the opportunity to introduce them to the Captain and XO. She was glad to get out of her uniform and into a pair of slacks and a floral top, probably the most colourful one she had. She made a mental note to really expand her wardrobe a bit.

Dan barely had time to change, so he came in jeans and a white shirt and Elena dressed in a simple white dress contrasting well with her tanned skin, without her actually noticing. "Hi Erin," Elena greeted Erin, whom she met briefly before. As jovial as her husband was, so reticent she was, very glad that she knew at least one person her. She had yet to meet the Chief of Science, but in her mind she was happy to leave that till tomorrow.

"And I can introduce you to Lieutenant Yaotome," Erin said to Elena.

"No rush," Elena said more to herself than to Erin.

Walking into the lounge, Liam noticed most everyone present were out of uniform but given his rather scant civilian wardrobe selection he really didn't have much choice. He really wasn't a fan of large social gatherings but figured he also didn't want to get on the wrong side of command by not appearing.

Ridge, who preferred jeans and a pullovers to almost anything else, was dressed in his favorite. Lived-in jeans with a soft white Henley pullover and bare feet stuck into soft moccasins. He paused just inside the door, nodded to the captain, and sought out the most uncomfortable-looking person in the place and headed straight forward. "Good evening, Lieutenant," he said to Liam. "Not sure we've met as yet. I'm Commander Maguire."

"No we haven't and it's nice to meet you Commander" as he stretched out his hand "I'm Liam O'Riley your Chief Engineer" then he paused a moment "I must say looking around the room I feel a little.....how should I put this....quite overdressed."

"First Officer here and as to your state of dress, ... maybe?" Ridge grinned as he looked down at his (very) casual outfit. "But what would I know? I grew up on a horse ranch. 'Dressed up' meant putting on the good flannel shirt for family gatherings. Where are you from originally?"

Liam had to chuckle to himself at the XO's comment; it was nice to see a sense of humor. "I'm from just outside of Dublin, Ireland, on Earth" then he paused "Growing up our idea of dressing up was putting on a clean vest; so looks like our past isn't all that much different" as Liam grinned "When you get the chance please stop by engineering and I'll give you the grand tour."

"Be happy to," Ridge said. "What did your family do? As I said, I grew up on a horse ranch, mucking out stalls and feeding the horses before my eyes were fully open. That part of the Academy never gave me any trouble. It was about hard-wired in to wake up at dawn."

"That's certainly a hard habit to break getting up that time of the day when it's ingrained in you. My mother's a teacher and my father owned his own shuttle repair business that I worked at growing up; so I guess engineering is in my blood sort of speak" Liam replied "So that's quite the jump from a horse rancher to a XO."

"I spent time traveling off world as a kid," Ridge said. "There's no feeling like it. Being in space. Seeing what's out there. Got hooked on the idea early on though maybe one day, I'll go back to the ranch. Settle down and train horses." He smiled shyly. "Just not now ... you know?"

With a grin "It's like my gramps used to say 'boy if you have an itch you better take the time to scratch it' so yes I know exactly what you mean" Liam replied. Looking towards the entrance "Commander it was nice getting to know you, with respect, if you'll excuse me I see some of my team here and I should go say hello" as he gave Ridge a respectful nod then walked over to some of his team.

Urushi entered the room, her lavender coloured hair tied up in a pony tail. She had known that this was a casual gathering, so had opted for a white tank top which was slightly cropped to show a slither of her stomach and her navel. It was accompanied by a light hoodie style jacket which she left unzipped and completed with three quarter length trousers and a pair of sneakers. It was rather casual for her, yet it was comfortable and easy to move around in, something she appreciated.

Seeing that the room was already rather busy she made her way over towards the table where the food and drink was and perused it with interest. She couldn't help but chuckle upon spotting a few Trill dishes amongst the selection.

Threading his way among the assembled crew members, some he knew, some he didn't, he stopped by the ship's Chief Science Officer. "The food makes you laugh," he asked.

Urushi jumped at the sudden appearance of the man next to her. "Huh?!" she exclaimed. "Oh..." she looked up at him before back at the food. "Not really. I was just a little surprised to see some dishes here from Trill. Not many people in Starfleet care for them." The young science officer returned her gaze to the much taller man. "I'm Lieutenant Urushi Yaotome, Chief Science Officer. Whom might you be?"

"Commander Maguire," Ridge answered. "Ship's First Officer." He gestured toward the spread. "My theory is the spread is representative of the crew's home worlds though, being new aboard, it's a guess more than anything."

"Pleasure to meet you Commander," Urushi replied. "And yeah, you're probably right." she added. "Can I ask... You have Vulcan ears. But you don't... seem... Vulcan?"

"No," Ridge said at once. "You can't ask. How about we stick to small talk for now?"

'Someone's touchy...' Urushi thought as she quickly looked away. "Sure thing. Not a problem," she said giving him a nervous smile. "Is this your first assignment as an XO?" she asked attempting to stick to the 'small talk' that the commander had requested.

"Second," Ridge said. "Served aboard the Tecumseh before this. So tell me, do you have a specialty as a scientist or are you more of a generalist?"

"I'm a mix of everything. However I majored in Astrophysics. So that's my specialty if I have one," Urushi explained with a smile. "Although since joining with the Leon symbiot, I have gained all of his knowledge. His first host was a Starfleet Captain. I'm the second host."

"I have a friend, Dr. Ito, who's compiling data on his recent study of a stellar nursery." Ridge said. "That and teaching a course at the Academy." He shook his head slightly. "He says he's always torn between being out in space and taking the time to study the data he collects."

Urushi's eyes seemed to twinkle. "I'd love to see that!" She said. "If he's willing to share, I'd love to take a look!"

"I'll tell him of your interest," Ridge said. "He can be a bit ... possessive ... in the early stages. But who knows? Maybe you can charm it out of him."


[1802]

While various conversation took place Daegan nodded to Sizia, indicating it was time to kick things off.

Tapping her commbadge the Yeoman open a channel for a ship wide hail. "Attention...All crew and dock personnel assigned to the USS Valkyrie....Attention. In recognition for your efforts in preparing the ship for departure you are hereby invited to the Valhalla lounge for an open Captain's Mess. No Formal attire required. Those currently on duty will be authorized to attend as reliefs allow."

Ensign Thomas was relaxing in her quarters when she heard the announcement "Hmm.....free food and I can wear civilian attire and not be in uniform? I'm there" she thought as she sprang off the couch and headed for the bedroom. Several minutes later Stevie emerged dressed in a pair of nicely fitting black pants, black flats, and a modest red top then headed out the door.

Ensign S'ladaar did have to wait for the translation to come through as her people had learn the human language long ago. After hearing the announcement she shifted one of her private monitors to watch the activities within the lounge. She wasn't concerned about not being able to attend but she left the monitor tuned in so she could watch the various interaction.

Garath had just gotten off duty when he heard the announcement and had come straight to the lounge. Already teeming with people he made his way to Captain and XO to make his respects before indulging. While he waited he scanned the groups of people both in and out of uniform. He had yet to meet the new chief medical officer and from what the Captain had mentioned the other day he knew he wanted to introduce himself. There were several of the senior officers near the Captain as they greeted and mingled with others but he saw no one that appeared to the type that would have any interest in forging. His turn finally came and he nodded respectfully to the Captain, his mate and then to the XO, "Captain, Ma'am, Commander."

"Good evening Ensign. Ensign, my wife Julianna...."

"Pleasure to meet you," she said. "I don't believe we've been introduced. You are ...?"

"The Honor is mine Mrs. Baas, Ensign Garath of the House of Varal, Security Officer. Thank you for the invitation Captain."

"You're welcome Ensign. Enjoy yourself." Daegan nodded sharply to the young officer and watched him leave.

Jules slanted a glance at her husband and made a mental note to ask him later why he was introducing her only as his wife rather than her running Intelligence for the ship. "Everyone is supposed to come up and say hello," she asked. "Is that how this works?"

"Nah, but I'm not gonna turn them away if some wants to. Garath is the son of the head of a Klingon house so paying respect to the host of a function is the honorable thing to do, not to mention his father was also once a Starfleet Admiral.

"Interesting conflict of interest," Jules murmured. "Starfleet Admiral and the head of a Klingon house." She grinned up at her husband. "Can you imagine the dinner conversations?"

"Oh he resigned his commission some time ago. According to what I read there was an incident that got him demoted to Commodore and then he had a major mission recalled...so he resigned and went back to the Empire."

"And here's his son, still in Starfleet," Jules said as she shook her head. "That's got to be hard on his father."

Daegan shrugged, "Perhaps. But maybe he's just following in his father's footsteps? Whatever his reasons, I have a feeling it'll be interesting to see what that young man is made of."

"Agreed," Jules said. "Agreed."


TBC....

 

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