The Search For Caffiene

Posted on 27 Jun 2018 @ 6:42pm by Commodore Harvey Geisler
Edited on on 27 Jun 2018 @ 6:42pm

1,340 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: The Search Begins
Location: Talons
Timeline: MD 2 || 1000 hours

Harvey entered Talons, fresh off his post-drill inspection. The ship and crew had performed admirably, aside from the few glitches that caused actual accidents on board. Perhaps it was best that it happened during a drill and not in a stressful situation where things could have quickly become worse.

The Captain, on the other hand, found himself devoid of energy. His lack of coffee consumption, thanks to his wife's pregnancy and extremely sensitive olfactory senses, was taking its toll. He needed to find an alternative, and fast. While he had consulted a few members of the crew, it occurred to him that there was a vast resource aboard the ship that he hadn't yet considered.

"Good morning," he greeted Selah as he sat down at the bar. "What's left of it anyway."

"Jaia," greeted Selah in Tel. The greeting sounded so much like the humans' 'hiya' that few really noticed she was saying something in a different language, but it had a far different meaning than just hello. It fully meant, 'greetings and good health.' "What can I do for you this morning, Captain?"

"I need your help," Harvey plainly stated. "I've got an addiction, and I'm going through a terrible withdrawal. I was hoping you might have some ideas."

"Hm. Well," said Selah, lacing her fingers together and resting her elbows on the bar, chin settling onto her laced fingers, "if you're talking, like, mac and cheese or bacon, I can definitely hook you up. Oooh!" she exclaimed suddenly, straightening and staring at a point just over the Captain's shoulder. "Bacon mac and cheese! That's a great idea! Anyway!" She shook her head and focused on the Captain again. "What are we talking here? Alcohol? Strawberries? Strawberries in alcohol, which is also a brilliant idea that I just came up with."

Harvey had forgotten how eclectic the Telino really was. Shame on him for not entering Talons during the last few weeks. He sighed, though he did like the idea of bacon mac and cheese. Strawberries and alcohol seemed like an interesting mix, but he didn't like his drinks fruity. He was left with little choice in his reply, of which was a single shake of his head followed by a single word, "Coffee."

"Oh, coffee!" replied Selah, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world and she'd been completely stupid not to realize it at once. "Right. Okay, so I've got..." she trailed off as she turned to glance at the coffee counter behind her, "... seven blends right now. Breakfast blend, which is a mild roast, a good medium roast Jamaican Blue Mountain, French Roast, Italian Roast, Espresso Blend, and a bold roast brewed both strong and medium strong. I'm partial to the strong bold roast. Twice the caffeine and it'll put hair on your chest. That does tend to be a problem, but I'm not Connected, so...." She shrugged as if to say it didn't matter.

Harvey feigned a sigh, and added a chuckle. "No, no." Looking up at her, he explained, "Joey can't stand the smell of coffee. Even now, me sitting this close to coffee, she can smell that on me two hours after I leave here, and it just upsets the innards. So, I have to keep away from it, or I have to sleep in my Ready Room until the twins are born. What I'm looking for is some sort of substitute. I've been trying different teas, but I'm striking out."

"Oh, I see," replied Selah. "Happy wife, happy life. Or in this case, at least not sick wife, happy life. I think I may have just the thing! Jamba tea, from Alcar. The caffeine content is highest of any tea or coffee out in the known universe and it tastes pretty good, too. Most Alcaren brew it with cinnamon, but I prefer it just as it is. What do you think? Wanna give it a go?"

The very mention of the word tea instantly gave Harvey reservation. By this point, he'd already tried every caffeinated and black tea from Earth that had been programmed into the replicator and come up short. But, he wasn't in a position to be picky. "Let's try it."

"Coming right up!" declared Selah happily, and she skipped away to make the tea. She returned only three minutes later with a cup of hot Jamba tea and set it in front of the Captain. "One cup of Jamba tea, full of cafeinated goodness," she said. "If this doesn't work, I suggest seeing Dr. Kij for a hypo-drip."

"I definitely want to avoid the medicated route," stated Harvey as he picked up the cup. Before tasting it, he raised it to his nose and took a sip. He half expected to smell the cinnamon, but he was satisfied when he didn't detect it among the otherwise pleasant aroma. Finally, he lifted it to his lips for a sample, only to be disappointed. Of course, he was expecting it to be the second greatest elixir to coffee, but decades of drinking the Terran drink had set his standards extremely high. This is not to say that the drink was bad. In fact, the taste was quite satisfying, if only just short of enjoyable. "Not too bad," he declared, taking another sip. "It's no dark roast, or a blonde roast for that matter, but it's not bad."

"Yeah," agreed Selah, wrinkling her nose. "It's definitely tea. A strong, black tea, but still tea. Even so, the caffeine content is a bit crazy, so it's got that going for it."

"That it does indeed," he confirmed. He took another sip, well an amount that akin to a healthy portion, before asking, "How's business been lately?"

"Not bad, all things considered," she replied. "Got a bit slow while everyone's memories were being restored- I was one of the last- but other than that, it hasn't been bad."

"Must have been liberating," Harvey remarked, taking another sip, "living a life without past regrets hanging over your shoulder, even if it was just for a brief window."

"No kidding," agreed Selah. "It was nice to not be royalty for awhile, even if I couldn't fully appreciate it. Ah, well. It's not like I'm actually royal here, anyway, but that's the sort of thing that looms on the horizon, threatening to rear its ugly head at the worst possible moment."

"Be careful what you say. Depending on how rough things get, I might need royalty on the bridge for a conversation or two." Harvey took another drink of the Jamba tea. "Any chance I could try this with the cinnamon?"

"Absolutely," replied Selah. She reached under the bar and produced a cinnamon stick, which she dropped into the cup of tea. "Give it a couple of minutes and it should be set. If you ever need royalty on the bridge, we'll be in deep trouble, indeed," she added.

A bit impatient to taste the altered drink, Harvey took hold of the stick and slowly stirred, accelerating the process. "Agreed on all counts," he told Selah.

"Let's hope it never comes to that," she replied, sounding weary and wise at once. "Anyway!" she added, brightening significantly. "Is there anything else I can get for you?"

He didn't immediately reply, instead he lifted the tea to allow its new scent to closely permeate his olfactory senses. The aroma was pleasant, as was the subsequent taste test. He wasn't one for bold flavors in his beverages, as his coffee selections demonstrated. But the presence of cinammon certainly gave the Jamba tea a much needed advantage. Smiling to show his appreciation, he replied, "No, Selah, I believe this will do. Thanks for your help."

"Anytime, Captain," she replied with a bright smile. "After all, that's literally my job. Let me know if you decide you need something else.

With a nod, Harvey finished his tea, rose from the bar, and left Talons as the new tea surged throughout his veins.

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