Waiting And A Drink

Posted on Fri Jun 28th, 2024 @ 6:14am by Commodore Ledeya ‘Ed’ Ehestri (*)

Mission: Cosmos
Location: Esquimalt Station
Timeline: April 2398
1849 words - 3.7 OF Standard Post Measure

It was too late for dinner and so Marine Captain Samuel Woolheater, sat at the bar at “Hooch’s Duty” and ordered a whiskey. It was a comfortable bar. In the HAB ring but far enough away from many of the ‘touristas’ that people, marine or fleet, could just relax a bit. It had that warm color to it as well. The bar itself was oak and well carved. The lighting was comfortable and Sam couldn’t sleep anyway. There was a game on one of the overhead monitors that looked interesting. It was a motorsports game/contest. Taking place on Mars, in the Valles Marineris. Had it really been four years already since the last endurance race? This was the “King of Hammers” race. Repulsorlift motorbikes traversed the most famous canyon in the Sol system. It looked fun. His drink arrived in a whiskey tumbler. The bartender filled the tumbler generously and Sam took a drink of the ‘real stuff’.

Ledeya glanced over as someone sat down next to her and distracted her from her zoned out thoughts on how to handle the growing situation with Mitchel and his absence. The bartender smiled at the commodore as she put another iced coffee in front of her but said nothing. She was a familiar sight sat there zoned out but she causing no issues and did not at all seemed to be interested in conversations. She offered a nod to the man before looking up at the monitors.

“Thanks” he said as the bartender left to deliver a drink to the woman seated next to him. Sam took a drink. The Macallan was warm and what a taste! He savored it, it had been a while snce he last had non-synth drink. Warm going down but oh-so-smooth. It was an indulgence he allowed himself. He acknowledged the nod from his neighbor, “Yut” he said in his Pacifican accent. “Yut” being Marine for “howdy”. On the overhead monitor, a camera drone was closely following three different endurance riders. They were in the Candor Chasma. One of the largest canyons in the Valles Marineris canyon system on Mars. The feature is geographically divided into two halves: East and West Candor Chasmas, respectively. The repulse motorbikes screamed past the stationary cameras along the route. Kicking up dust and debris as the anti-gravity repulsor engines were tricked out and customized to an insane degree. “Whoa! Man, would you look at that!” Sam said absent mindedly to no one in particular. “He’s gotta be pushing two-hundred…two twenty-five. Y’know its in the Candor Chasma where they can pick up speed and make up time.”

Ledeya had not heard anyone say ‘yut’ for a long time. None of her marines did that but it was easy to tell even in civilian clothes that he had to be a marine from his greeting to the way to sat. Ledeya on the other hand was just done with the day so leant back as the man carried on the conversation. “At least.” She commented. “Been a long time since I have watched this.” She added watching as the camera drone was nearly smashed as a rider veered to close.

“Whoa!!” Sam reacted as the camera drone backed off and as the race driver flipped the automated drone off an took the lead. Two others were hot on the tail and attempting to close the distance. An image of the driver of the lead craft came onto the screen on the left hand side giving stats. Sam took another sip and read the video feed quickly. “Ah” he said to himself. Then, as if he understood some important fact, he looked over to his neighbor. “Won the race last two times, 2393 and 2389. Going for a third time for this year and think about all the endorsements and all the VIP treatment if you can pull it off?” He added, “Not trying to..y’know…armchair general this but; at one time I fancied myself eligible to get a rig and just be in the race.” He took a drink returning his attention to the monitor for a moment. Then he realized that he probably shouldn’t commandere the video monitor. He sat up straighter, reached over the bar and into the well to fetch the remote and then set it on the bar closer to his neighbor. “You want to pick something else?”

Did not every teenage boy on earth once upon a time want to be a racer? The betazoid wondered to herself as she looked at the remote a little confused on it before she realised it controlled the monitors “I am good marine. You enjoy it.” She assured. She did not want to take over when he had been enjoying it as had several other people glancing around.

“Ay!” came a grunt from the bartender who looked plesantly annoyed at Sam, “Keep your mits out of the well and…” here she took back the remote and placed it behind her on the shelf, “…off the remote!” “Sorry!!” he said. She smiled and was only slightly annoyed that he even thought about changing the video feed to something else. She saw his tumbler was empty and proceeded to pour him a second while saying, “I’ve got four bottles, count ’em…four…bottles of Saurian brandy riding on number twenty-two!” She finished pouring and added, “You can count to at least four can’t you?” she said teasing him and all in good fun. Sam said, “Very funny…I just thought…” She interrupted him, “Well that’s you’re problem right there in’nt? Thinking.” She winked, ribbing him and laughing, “Hzzzands off the remote.” She reached for Sam’s hand and gave it a friendly squeeze. She was only playing – and making a point. She stopped at the Commodore and asked, “You OK Commodore?” Sam looked over…~Commodore?~

The commodore in question raised an eyebrow at being called out in the bar when she had purposely worn something that screamed not commodore in a green maxi dress that almost floated “I am good Shashi.” Ledeya assured glancing up to see the marine watching her “Ledeya Ehestri.” She held out her hand to him

Sam’s eyebrows went up in surprise. Then a smile crept on his face in a most peculiar and handsome way. His scruffy face with a golden brown five o’clock shadow. He smiled understandingly-much more than understandingly. It was one of those warm smiles with a quality of eternal reassurance in it, that you may come across four or five times in life. It faced–or seemed to face–the whole world for an instant, and then concentrated on her with an irresistible prejudice in her favor. More so, it was friendly. The kind of friend that you haven’t seen in years and yet, after the first minute, pickup right where you left off. Samuel’s smile, well, it understood you just as far as you wanted to be understood, believed in you as you would like to believe in yourself, and assured you that it had precisely the impression of you that, at your best, you hoped to convey.

He took Ledeya’s hand and gave a firm, but not painful squeeze, “Samuel Woolheater” he said and then released. He didn’t say anything about her rank and none of the pleasantries. There was really no pretence about him. He was comfortable in casual pants and a marine-issue t-shirt, underneath a comfortably soft flannel unbuttoned shirt. “You’re a regular here. I can tell.”

“Me and the Cosmos are in and out of here regularly.” She explained hoping that he meant the base and not the bar but she would not judge him if he meant the bar as it was a good place to hang out. It was a mixture of everything that she enjoyed about somewhere to spend her free time. “But this bar is a great place to hang out and not many of my crew venture this far off the beaten track unless they are looking for me. So what ship are you on then?” She could not place the name so it could not be her task group.

He nodded, “That’s a good review as any bar can ever get I think. A great place to hang out” he said. He guffawed and said apologetically, “Didn’t mean to imply that you’re…y’know…a lush or anything. It’s just…when people here know you by name” he said and then answered her directly. ” Elysium is where my I’m assigned. Sixty-second Marine detachment. I get to serve as a captain of the first platoon. Major Azhul is our CO. Commodore Lalor-Richardson is our skipper. I’ve been there now…let’s see…” hedid a quick calculation in his head, “two years? Yeah. Two years. I’m pleased to serve as a sniper and a scout when I’m not doing command duties.” He let that sit for a moment. Returning his attention to the race as a spectacular view of the race from overhead was displayed. The racers kicking up a trail of dust that clouded up behind them. “You and the Cosmos huh? You mean yourself and everyone else? Or is the Cosmos a ship?” he asked her.

The woman had no idea what a lush was but it would be something to ask her temporarily XO when she got back for the cosmos. “The USS Cosmos is my ship.” She assured with a smile. “Cannot say I know of the ship or any of the officers I am afraid. My Marine Commanding Officer is Major Drake.” Starfleet was a big space and she tried not to get herself overly involved in other people’s business unless it was splashed all over the daily mail or any other number of news networks that loved nothing more than gossip. She was relieved that none of them had gotten wind of her missing Executive Officer. “I will have to ask him about your assignment.”

Sam shook his head, “Drill Sergeant back at boot many years ago now said to me, “All of us; we’re just a number. A cog in a well oiled machine. Try not to sweat the small stuff; it’s all small stuff” he said and emptied his whiskey tumbler. He pushed the tumbler away and said, “A pleasure to meet you” he said and he meant it. “Bottom rung up top for a change. That doesn’t happen too often. I’ll leave you to it” he said as he swivelled on his stool in a relaxed and easy way. He wasn’t drunk or even tipsy. He moved in a relax way. A comfortable and friendly way.

Ledeya offered a smile and offered her own parting words. “We might have had the same drill Sergeant at one time. Good luck out there Samuel.” She commented as the barman came to pour another one whilst she waited for her proper company to join her.