Pilots on the Loose II

Posted on 09 Mar 2021 @ 7:12pm by Lieutenant Commander Gemma Alexander & Lieutenant Commander Arjin Djinx & Lieutenant JG Charles McCullen

2,832 words; about a 14 minute read

Mission: Interlude
Location: New Bajor
Timeline: Feb 3, 2390 1900 hrs

Gemma Alexander yelled with the crowd as members of competing Bajoran Springball teams fought for points in the match. "My gran moves faster!" she yelled again good naturedly at her chosen team with a grin then drank some of her light ale. There was an excitement in the crowd somehow better not being on a holodeck as the, well for lack of a better word, sports bar catered to fans. There was even a field out back for any manner of more outdoor games. Right now there was an official match but later the rooms would open to use the facilities if people wished.

Arjin was sipping at a takeaway fruit beverage whilst strolling around a sports complex. It was a complex flavor with a mix of sweet and bitter. He was not really watching any games or sporters. Just strolling around. Suddenly he heard a big roar coming from his right where apparently a Springball game was held. Not having a real purpose, he wandered over there. That being as good as a direction as any other.

Gemma turned at a familiar face and smiled, raising her glass briefly in Arjin's direction.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw someone raising a glass towards him. Upon closer inspection, he recognized the fighter squadron Commander. To say he had much interaction with her would be stretching the truth. He raised his glass in response. Wondering wether or not to walk over. But refraining to do so would be be quite rude. So he wandered over to where she sat.
“Commander,”, he said. Tilting his head towards the game he added, “Springball huh?”

Alexander smiled, "I like it...Come On! My Gran can do better!" she yelled the second statement as one of the players missed an obvious shot. Then returned her attention to Arjin her voice once again politely normal as though she didn't just yell something unrelated to the immediate conversation to hand, "I'm still improving on it myself, so many sports so little time..." She joked.

Arjin was taken aback a bit by how fiercely the Commander was into it. But then again sports can do that and fighter pilots can work miracles also on adrenaline alone. Smiling, he picked up on her last comment. “So you are into multiple sports then? Which would be your favorite then?”

She gestured to one of the empty seats at the table, if he wanted a seat, then replied, "Oh that's a tough one, I'd think I'd have to go with Football, British not the old North American one with the oblong ball, it's a national passtime back home. Tottenham Hotspur's!" She quipped, raising her hand briefly.

Not having anything else to do, Arjin sat down. The name she had mentioned did not ring a bell. He knew the sport. It was one of the biggest on earth. He was not especially interested in it himself. He guessed you had to be from earth to fully relate. “I suppose Tottenham is a city name. “, he asked. “But what is a Hotspur?”

Gemma laughed she was used to such questions, "Bit of old weird British History. I can get more detailed but the main points are yes Totenham is a part of London, England on Earth. Hotspur is old English for 'an impetuous or fiery person'. So seemed to fit a sports team." She glanced at the score board pleased her chosen team had won then back to Djinx.

Ensign Baro Jolan, one of the blackhawk pilots and part of the group Gemma was meeting arrived. He headed over with a grin. "I am here the night is saved." he said lightly, then catching sight of the Science Chief nodded, "Welcome to the party." He said before taking another seat.

Lieutenant Charlie McCullen walked into the room, closely followed by a tall Bajoran man and two pilots, a human woman, Ensign Sarah Kineer and an Andorian male, Ensign Letan Ch'mar, both from Bravo Flight. The Bajoran was engaged in easy conversation with the two pilots. Charlie paused, looking around the room, trying to assess where they should sit.

The Bajoran man looked around the room, grinned, leaned into Charlie's ear and whispered something, then gave the young helmsman a gentle nudge. Charlie frowned at the man, then grinned, then made his way over to Gemma's table. The two Bravo Flight pilots headed for Baro Jolan's table.

"Uh, hi... sorry if we're late." Charlie told Gemma, doing his very best not to look like a bag of nerves.

Arjin wanted to comment on the Lieutenant Commander’s explanation, when a Bajoran pilot came over. He nodded back at him. Then looking back towards the Squadron Commander, he replied “You are having a party here with your crew? I should maybe leave you to it then?”

His words barely out of his mouth, the crowd grew with four other people joining. One of them was the young Helmsman of the Black Hawk. Seemingly nervous as hell about something.

"No you're welcome here if you'd like, you're our crew too. Our top science brain, maybe under appreciated sometimes." Gemma smiled. Giving a vaguely apologetic look at the interruption as he had actually looked interested in her explanation, sometimes when she started to get into obscure British history peoples eyes glazed over. She glanced over at the group, when one tosses out an open invite one never knows who will actually show, "Welcome have a seat" She said warmly. She gestured at the table, now full, as she did so.

"I'm not even a member of Starfleet," the tall Bajoran smiled easily, "but I'm here with this guy." He placed his hands on Charlie's shoulders.

"Uh," Charlie managed. There were many things that Lieutenant Junior Grade Charles James McCullen of the USS Black Hawk was good at. Socializing in crowds was not one of those things. It had taken a half our of persuasion from Darys to get the young helmsman to leave their home. He'd thrown up from the anxiety just thinking about it. In the end, what had gotten him going was thinking of the whole thing like a mission. This was something he had to do, and he would do it because that was the mission. He felt Darys squeeze his shoulders gently and carefully placed an amused grin on his face. "This dark handsome stranger is my fiancé, Leoja Darys, he lives here on New Bajor, I hope you don't mind me bringing him along?"

“Thank you for the invite.”, he nodded towards the Commander. “I think I will accept it.”
Turning his head towards Lt. McCullen and his fiancé, Arjin smiled. “If I am welcome amongst you pilots, I am sure no one will mind your fiancé joining also.”, he added. His eyes darting over the tall dark handsome stranger.
Handsome he was indeed. “I am Lieutenant Commander Djinx, Chief Science.”, he stated holding out his hand. “Welcome.”

"A fellow scientist," Darys smiled, removing one hand from Charlie's shoulder and using it to squeeze the lieutenant commander's hand. "I'm the chief xenoanthropologist for the Bajoran Institute of Science here on New Bajor. It's a pleasure, lieutenant commander."

"How about some drinks?" Charlie prompted, gamely attempting to keep his momentum going. "What's everyone drinking?"

"Spring wine for me, Tiku." Darys replied and Charlie couldn't help but wince, his fiancé's pet name was not something he wanted everyone to know. When he turned to shoot a visual dagger at the man he saw an impish grin that told him it hadn't been an accident at all.

"Tiku?" Baro said in a tone of being highly amused but something he was gonna remember for future, Gemma stifled a grin but her eyes held a gentle amusement. "Glad to meet you Darys." She glanced around the table, "Alright you heard the man, give Galahad your order and let's get this night gong." Baro aka Galahad glanced over with a puzzled look to Gemma who replied, "What like he can carry everything?" She gestured at Charles and around the room. The waitstaff were hopping, they appeared understaffed as the game ended and the rooms filled up while music started to play as they'd been talking.

Jolan nodded getting it and he stood as well and bowing elaborately to the table.

“A Xenoanthropologist”, Arjin repeated. “Fascinating, but not my field of expertise I am afraid.” Turning towards the the man Called Galahad he ordered “Anything with alcohol in will be fine for me.”

Charlie moved to stand next to Jolan, resisting the urge to fold his arms across his chest and plopping his fists on his waist instead. "Thanks for being my wingman," he told the fighter pilot.

Ensign Kineer, callsign "Kingslayer" slapped her hand on the table and called out for a classic synthale. Ensign Ch'mar, callsign "Ushaan", asked for an Andorian whiskey.

Jolan gave a friendly smile at the helmsman, "It's what I do, Jolan." He introduced himself easily as he finished getting the orders, "Let's go water this crowd before they get rowdy." He winked at Gemma who laughed with the rest. "We're not that bad, the Skipper'd have my delicates in a vice..." She joked with an easy humor.

"Sure, so what's everyone having?" Charlie asked, he could feel the anxiety starting to slip as he settled in with the group. "I've got one spring wine, a classic synthale, an Andorian whiskey and one anything with alcohol surprise. What else?"

Arjin smiled as he saw how the pilots interacted. That was different to how his department crew interacted indeed.

"Young's double chocolate stout if they have it, if not anything similiar." Gemma replied being the last one to order. Jolan gave a mock look of horror, "Chocolate beer?" Alexander grinned, "Like best of both worlds never underestimate ones ability to put chocolate into anything.". With a final 'If you're sure but I think you're a little crazy' look Jolan looked at Charlie, "Well I think we got it let's go before senior officers order more weird things...."

"Uh... yeah," the helmsman replied, awkwardly realizing that he was actually a senior officer himself but not wanting to say anything for fear of ruining the momentum he had built up. It wasn't important anyway, rank and position didn't matter a bit when they were out together. "A spring wine, a synthale, a whiskey, a thing, a chocolate stout and, uh... a Cavamelon Cooler for me. Shall we?"

Charlie led the way over to the bar, smiling at the bartender as he approached. "Hey, Lotan."
"Charlie, good to see you." The bartender replied, leaning forward on the bar, "It's been a while. Where's Darys?"
"Uh, over there with the Starfleet crowd. We got an order to put in."
"Thus, the reason you're back in town. Well, it's good to see your face, anyway. What'll you have?"

Jolan gave his pile of orders then glanced at Charlie.

"That should be it, I think." Charlie smiled, "and two big glasses of water."

"Take a seat, we'll bring it over." The bartender explained, Charlie nodded and turned to Jolan, "perks of being a local, I guess. Whenever I'm home Darys and I spend, uh... probably a bit too much time in here."

Jolan nodded, "I did not know you were into sports bars." Then he grinned, "And this is why I need to hang out more with people, work, work, work and never learn the fun stuff." He replied lightly as he turned and walked with Charlie back to the table.

"I'm, uh... into a lot of things," Charlie replied as they walked back to the table. His mind was running at a hundred miles an hour trying not to sound like the nervous wreck he felt like. Social skills and social activities were, if he had to be honest with himself, one of his biggest weaknesses.

"That's good." He said encouragingly, "All work and no play makes for ulcers and unibrows." Jolan replied, "What's your fun?" He asked in his usual friendly outgoing manner.

TAG Charlie

“Are you always such a jolly bunch?”, Arjin asked LT. Commander Alexander.

Gemma smiled at the science chief, "We take our work seriously but not much else I think, one never knows what tomorrow will bring best to enjoy when you can. I take it science is a bit different?"

“Sure. Like in your department there is not much to no place for errors. The big difference is that most of the time we get much more time to figure things out. And we don’t have to conduct our experiments in such a fast and wobbly environment.”, Djinx replied. “I’m not sure my stomach could stand it either.”

Gemma smiled, "Well to be fair, I don't have the mindset to do what you do. Between us all we cover the bases pretty well." She replied honestly. At it's core the Black Hawk was a good, solid team and she appreciated that. "but if you're interested sometime I could show you some flight moves, I promise no loops." she held up both hands in earnest promise.

As Gemma and Djinx talked, a few of the other pilots joked in the background as they brought over another table to connect to this one and spread out as they'd gotten permission from one of the wait staff to do. Conversations continued as the live sports shut down and recordings of sports played silently on screens as waitstaff moved tables for a dance floor.

“I will give it some thought first.”, the Commander answered in earnest. “I will let you know if and when.”

"I'd, uh... I wouldn't mind giving one of your little birds a try, one of these days," Charlie spoke up in the gap, swallowing the last of his Cavamelon Cooler and grinning at the warmness spreading through his chest. "I know I'm just a helmsman, all I do is push buttons, but I'm, uh... a pretty good pilot, too."

“Come, come now Lieutenant.”, Arjin replied. “Don’t set yourself short. If you managed to succeed in Starfleet training and become Chief of flight control, you are an excellent pilot. What you do is more than pushing some buttons.”

"I suppose," Charlie conceded, "and don't get me wrong, I love my job. Flying the 'Hawk is fantastic... but there are times when I'm listening to your comms out there, that I'd give my kidneys to be on your guys' wing."

Gemma smiled, drinking more of her own, "Are we listening to the same coms? Because sometimes I'd like to trade this lot in..." She gave a mock glare to the other pilots who paused in their conversation enough to grin back, a few raised their drinks in salute. "Boss you know you love us." Jondar quipped. Alexander laughed, made a face at them then shaking her head in bemusement returned her attention to Charlie, "If you're really interested Charlie we can get you some sim time see how it goes, next best thing to being there."

"Uh, informally, yeah, I'm interested in giving it a go," the young helmsman took another pull from his glass and then frowned down at the empty vessel, "but I wouldn't actually wanna trade my job for anything, know what I mean?"

"I, for one, would very much enjoy seeing you in one of those tight little flight suits." Darys drawled, all sultry and suggestive, it was followed by a deliberately wicked grin as he turned to Gemma, "do you think he could borrow yours?"

Gemma, who had been drinking, snort/laughed her drink through her nose at Darys's words and grabbed at a napkin. Finally she managed, "I'm sort of using it at the moment but maybe I can send another one over later, honorary." She said the last to Charlie as a reply to his words just previously, a few pilots around them including Jolan laughed good-naturedly.

Djinx kinda liked the humor of this jolly bunch. For Arjin it felt strange since he was not used to it. But he could picture the pilot in His skinny suit. So he joined in with the laughter.

Part of Charlie wanted to be embarrassed, he felt a blush forming, but it was overridden by the sight of Young's double chocolate stout coming out of Gemma's nose and the wave of laughter that went around the group, and he found himself grinning instead. "Only if you're a very good boy and go buy me another drink," he told Darys, waving his empty glass in his fiance's general direction.

Fortunately Gemma wasn't drinking or the surprise of Charlie making a sassy comment would have caused another scene. She said nothing directly to Charlie but joined in with the "ooooooh" toward Darys from some of the other pilots as the music shifted to something more of a driving beat. "You tell 'em!" Jolan yelled and slapped him lightly on the back as their night was just getting started.

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