Two Fords Don't Make a Right

Posted on Thu Mar 12th, 2020 @ 12:54pm by Fordyce Kirschler PhD & Chief Helmsman Eden Bowers & Executive Officer Jake Ford

Mission: Mission 11 - Prospecting
Location: Ship's Lounge
Timeline: Following "Ford Meets Ford In a Corridor"
1458 words - 2.9 OF Standard Post Measure

Ford wasn't a particularly courteous person, but he was sensible enough to stop off at his quarters to stow his weapon before showing up at the bar. It also gave him an opportunity to crack into his belongings to retrieve a bottle of Yridian mead. Like all things Yridian it was of dubious provenance, much like Ford himself; however, the legality of its means of production and distribution aside, it was one helluva drink.

"This here is one helluva drink," said Ford as he eased down into an open seat at the table of Eden Bowers. With no real introduction, he shoved the bottle across the table to her. "Pour you a glass."

Having never met a stranger, a bar was just an open social space for Ford. Armoury Ford hadn't shown up just yet, he wasn't about to sit around drinking alone, and Eden looked like as good of a victim of his boisterous as anyone else milling around the room.

Eden looked up and stared at him for quite a while before blinking once. "I don't drink much." She finally said. "I kind of consider it unnecessary as I have one of those personalities that already makes people feel uncomfortable without having alcohol in my system. What is it?" It was an interesting color though, kind of cheerful if one could call a drink that, and Eden could.

"It's on me, is what it is," Jake interrupted, arriving at the table and sliding a quick arm around Eden for a light squeeze. "Eden, this is Ford. And yes, we've already established how interesting that name is..."

"Huh," she said looking back and forth between the two of them. "Well you aren't twins," she commented without a hint of amusement. " I would love to meet another Eden." No one ever called her by her surname and she hadn't bothered changing it when she married Sebastian as they didn't want anyone to know that they were married.

"I'm not sure I could survive two of you," Jake replied with a wink.

"I'm not sure you could either," Eden said to him very seriously. "One of me seems to throw you for a loop sometimes. I worry about your sanity though I never worry about my own," she was grinning now as she looked back to Ford. "So you met and introduced yourselves somehow seeing as you've already had a conversation about your names?"

"It was...an unusual run-in," Jake noted, glancing at his namesake. "Two Fords don't make a right, apparently."

Eden giggled.

Ford let out a good-natured laugh at that as he poured a glass for himself and Armoury Ford. He left the bottle accessible in case their table mate had a sudden desire. "Yeah... I was about to shoot him."

"Oh I'm so glad you didn't. I'm very very attached to him." Eden said. "There are so few people in this universe that see me as he does. So . . . . what do you do Ford?"

"Consultant for the Bank of Bolias," replied Ford. It was an honest answer, but he knew he didn't look the part. So, he added, "Freelance, of course. Mostly logistics work. Some programming, some A.I., some robotics. What about you, Miss...?"

"Oh I'm Eden, did I not say that? Sorry. I'm the helmsmen. I was before, I mean when this was a starfleet vessel. I'm actually really really old. Long story, got stuck in a transporter to save my life and here I am years in the future where I still know how to fly this class of starship so the captain kept me on."

Passenger Ford's eyes slowly shifted to Armoury Ford and then back to Eden. He cracked a sly grin. "Thought you said you didn't drink, sis?"

Eden looked confused for a moment. "I don't very often. It's true. Ask Jasper or Cassie, they were with me. It's not really a day I like to relive much so I'll leave out the details. It's in the history books. Just look up the USS Ishimura."

"Well, shit, I thought you were kiddin', lady," said Ford. His frivolity went right out the airlock as he tried to match her tone. He poured himself another glass of the Yridian mead and gave Armoury Ford a sidelong glance. "Don't tell me they pulled you outta cold storage or somethin'."

"Worse: they pulled me out of a job in a Ferengi's bar," Jake retorted. "But no, it's true. Don't ask me about the science of it, but sure enough I seem to have landed with a much older woman."

"I only feel thirty," Eden said with a bit of a blush on her face.

Ford made an unsubtle noise of acknowledgment as he pieced their relationship together. It wasn't really a surprise - how could you be surprised knowing something about people you'd only met - but he wouldn't have necessarily guessed it, either.

"I only feel thirty, too, under certain circumstances," replied Ford as he gestured toward the Yridian mead with a grin. "Starfleet ain't come to snatch you up? I figured they'd have done hauled you off to the Daystrom Institute or somethin'."

"No, thankfully. Then again I'm not entirely sure they know I'm alive. Maybe we should keep it that way. I don't fancy being stuck in cage much." Eden said, suddenly wary about what she'd told this person that she'd just met. She looked at Jake.

Ford caught the undertone immediately. He too looked at their companion before replying. "Oh, don't worry about me none. There's no love lost between Fordyce Kirschler and Starfleet; I reckon they were about as happy to get rid of me as I was to get rid of them."

All the same, Eden settled down in her seat and moved a bit closer to Jake. "That's an interesting name. I like people with interesting names. I think parents should think about what they name their children and not just pick the most popular name they can come up with. It's one of my pet peeves."

"I couldn't even tell you what they named me after," replied Ford with a shrug. "Maybe a place, maybe a distant relative. Maybe my daddy just threw a dart at a whole mess of names and 'Fordyce' come up the lucky winner. What about you, Miss Eden? Let me guess... Named after a planet? Habitable moon?"

"A street actually, though Dad used to joke that I was named after the Garden of Eden. So whenever we staying in one place long enough to grow anything he always called it the garden of Eden just to be funny. Mom and I never found it that funny but he amused himself."

"As daddies are wont to do. And what about you, Armoury Ford?" asked Ford, turning to Jake. "Old family name? Your folk the religious sort?"

"My older brother is called Jack; I think they were probably pretty lazy when it came to naming me," Jake sighed. "Jack and Jake. I imagine if I'd been born a girl they'd have called me Jill."

Eden hadn't even known he had a brother. She guessed they really did need to sit down and talk about things. Now she was wishing she had a drink to sip. "Let's all be glad that didn't happen."

Sliding an arm around Eden, Jake smiled. "Absolutely." He looked at Fordyce. "No significant other for you, then?"

Ford cleared his throat. "At the moment? Nope. Plenty of ex-Mrs. Kirchler's behind me. Probably plenty more of 'em ahead of me, too. But right now, I'm enjoying the single life. And the fine comforts of this ship, such as they are. Uh, speakin' of... Y'all reckon this next contract might net us some upgrades? I'm not saying I'm too good to have a daily argument with the waste extraction unit, but..."

"They happen . . . eventually. Hard to say when really. It's an old ship, almost as old as I am." Eden said matter of factly. "Course all of my parts were stuck in a pattern buffer for a long time but when they rematerialized they mostly still worked. "Had to go through gene therapy a bit . . . . . and that's not what you really needed to hear though." Her voice trailed off in a whisper.

Jake squeezed Eden's shoulder reassuringly. "But it had a happy ending," he smiled at her. "At any rate, I hope yours is a happy ending too, Mr Kirschler."

"So far, so good. Least I ain't dead," said Ford, adding after a long drink of his Yridian mead, "Yet."

Jake Ford
Chief Armoury Officer
SS Mary Rose

Eden Bowers
Chief Helmsman
SS Mary Rose

Dr. Fordyce Kirschler
Chief of Operations
SS Mary Rose