The Morning After (Part 3)
Posted on Wed Oct 20th, 2021 @ 8:54am by Captain Taiga Aisaka & Lieutenant Commander Ryuuji Takasu & Lieutenant JG Silica Tetsuhiko 'Twin-Tails' & Lieutenant Fubuki Kuchikukan 'Snowflake' & Chief Warrant Officer Karuta Roromiya & Mikoto Roromiya & Commander Nicolas Trigman 'Trigger' & Commander Alora Knight & Lieutenant Commander Marcus Decius 'Gladius' & Major Chiyo Shimada & Lieutenant Jasad Yuvek & Lieutenant JG Nozomi Kusuda 'Gemini' & Lieutenant Iowa Riverside 'Grey Ghost' & Lieutenant Bucannon Rogers "Van Winkle" & Captain Elizabeth F. "Liz" Beurling & Alice Shimada
Edited on on Wed Oct 20th, 2021 @ 8:55am
2,180 words; about a 11 minute read
Mission:
Operation Romulus Return
Location: USS Tokyo (NCC-91101), Mess Hall, Deck 5
Previously on Star Trek Tokyo:
"Looks as if some more introductions are in order," Nozomi remarked, turning her attention back to Alice. "Alice, the blonde lady is Lieutenant Junior Grade Silica Tetsuhiko. I'm not quite sure who her friend is, but..." she shifted her gaze over to Fubuki. "I'm sure she wouldn't mind filling us in?"
"Fubuki Kuchikukan call sign 'Snowflake', in case you're wondering that's because my name translates to 'Blizzard' in English" Fubuki told them. "Although Speedy calls me Snowball to tease me sometimes..."
"Snowball;" Iowa chuckled. "I've gotta remember that!"
And now the continuation...
"Interesting," Nozomi remarked. "My mother always used to tell me that my name meant 'Wishful Truth;' her reasoning was that by imparting me with a name that reflected values of honesty and humbleness, those values would, in essence, become intrinsic to my identity."
"Well, since we all talkin' about what our names mean, mine is derived from the great US State of 'Cornfields as far as the eye can see!'" Iowa said. "Though I suppose you could say its also derivative of the Indians who lived there at one time."
While Iowa was talking, Alice noticed Mikoto and the Warrant Officer joining her mother and Auntie Liz at their table:
Guess I won't be rejoining mom and Auntie Liz... She thought to herself.
Marcus entered the mess hall, heading straight for the replicator. "Coffee, Black and hot," was all he muttered. One of the few remaining vices he allowed himself since leaving Magna Roma and joining Starfleet was this caffeinated beverage, referred to as "Wake-up Juice" by the other gladiators. After that first invigorating sip of bean juice, he looked around and noticed a bevy of Females having an animated discussion. Seeing Iowa among them, he decided to be social. Good chance to get to know my pilots better, he thought.
Clearing his throat, he said, "Good morning, Lieutenant Riverside. This seems like a lively bunch. Mind if I join you?"
Iowa turned and looked up at Marcus.
"Sure; the more, the merrier!" She said, turning back to Nozomi. "We're gonna need a bigger table...
"You can have my seat, sir:" Alice said, standing up and offering her seat to Marcus.
"Aw... leaving us so soon?" Nozomi frowned in evident dismay.
Marcus remained standing. "Don't leave on my account." He gestured to the chair. "As you were. I would be a poor gentleman if I took a lady's seat."
He pulled an empty chair from a nearby table and sat so as not to crowd the others. "But thank you for the offer." He smiled warmly.
Alice simply nodded, wordlessly thanking the man for allowing her to stay and resumed her seat.
That was close... She thought to herself, looking over at her mother, Auntie Liz, the Warrant Officer, and Mikoto. At least I won't have to put up with her any longer than I have to...
"I'm starting to feel like the most popular person on the ship," Nozomi chuckled as she pulled Alice closer to her. "Alice, I know this is starting to be a lot of heads for you to keep track of, but this gentleman here is Lieutenant Commander Marcus Decius; he's the group commander for our flight wing, as well as the head of my individual squadron. Commander, this is Alice Shimada, the Marine CO's daughter."
"Pleased to meet you, young lady." Marcus offered his hand.
Alice hesitated for a moment, but reached forward and shook Marcus' hand.
"Thank you for letting me stay here:" She said. "I'd introduce you to my mommy, but she's over at a different table. You can't miss her, though; what with her green uniform and that I look a lot like her."
Marcus grinned at the girl. "Your mommy's a Marine, huh? I hold Marines in high regard. They're almost as brave as the gladiators on Magna Roma. Me, I fly fighters now. Looks like Gemini's taking good care of you." He turned to the others. "How about the rest of you? Anybody feel like swapping age-appropriate war stories?"
Nozomi chuckled. "I'm afraid I was 15 when the Dominion War ended, so sufficed to say I'm a little too young to be sharing war stories. Though, I know a friend whose Uncle was a Conn Officer aboard the USS Buran..."
She shrugged. "But then again, what can I say? Virtually everyone here has someone they know who fought in the Dominion War; I mean, given that the Federation was trying to keep up with one of the most efficient war machines in the galaxy, how could you not?"
"Maybe not personally;" Alice said. "But my mommy's been keeping an eye on a very high profile person from the era who recently fell from grace, and is analyzing the potential threat his following poses."
Alice placed a two fingers on her chin.
"Come to think of it;" She said. "How old did you say you were when the war ended? My mommy said she was around high school age when the war was going on."
"Fifteen," Nozomi reiterated. "Though if you're implying we could've been classmates, I was constantly moving around due to my father's job, so even if we were, it wouldn't have been for long."
"No, I don't think..." Alice trailed off. "Mommy's in her late 30s now, so she would have been somewhere in her late teens I think at the time, so... Late high school, early university? It probably would have been before she met dad, though. Mommy says she didn't meet him until she was like 20 or 21."
"Well, chief;" Iowa said, interlocking her hands at the back of her neck. "I would share, but my war stories don't end well for the ancestors of a few people here at this table. Maybe I just skip ahead to Korea if that's alright?"
"If you're concerned about potentially insulting my family lineage, don't be," Nozomi insisted. "What's done is done, and if I'm being honest, I can't say I was particularly close to any of my relatives who would've been alive at the time."
Silica and Fubuki sat there simply eating, it was an unusual conversation but both of the young lieutenants couldn't really participate in it.
Marcus spoke up. "Most of my best was stories involve hand to hand combat with primitive weapons and lots of gore." He shrugged. "Not exactly polite table conversation. Although there was this one time when I was in the arena with another gladiator, and he actually tripped and fell on his own sword. Easiest win I ever got. There was a big brouhaha afterwards about whether or not the other guy had thrown the game, but it all blew over after video footage showed he really did trip. Had to work very hard not to laugh at the poor sod." A smirk came to his face.
Sufficed to say, the mental image of a big, scary gladiator falling on his own sword was too much for Nozomi, and before she could stop herself, she threw her head back and started laughing uncontrollably.
"I apologize," she snickered as she wiped the tears from her eyes. "That was probably in poor taste, but that just about made my morning."
"Well, if that's the case, did I ever tell y'all about the time I shot down two kamikaze pilots bound for destroyers in our battle group?" Iowa asked. "Yep, riddled them zeroes full of holes and forced those bastards to ditch in the sea safely away from their intended targets. It was a different world back then: If you'd have told me back then that one day I'd wake up to a world where extraterrestrials walked among us, I'd have called you crazy."
Vanwinkle entered the Mess with a pep in his step; each day he was above the freezer and able to be in a cockpit was for the best, Rogers moved through the Mess and saw the Wing Commander and other Pilots at a table.
"Hey guys, some breakfast party I missed?" He asked.
"Hardly," Nozomi chuckled, motioning for him to take a seat. "I don't believe we've met before; and you would be...?"
"Thats Lieutenant Bucannon Rogers call sign 'Van Winkle'" Silica said from across the table with a smile. She motioned for Van Winkle to sit down and join them as the cnonversation went on.
Lieutenant Jasad Yuvek stood on the other side of the mess hall doors just outside the sensor range to activate them. He had to take several moments to prepare himself before he entered the large gathering area. Ever since his days in the Academy he had always experienced a strong sense of. . .what was the word his Counselor used. . .?
Anxiety. . .?
He hated the word. It seemed so weak and insignificant, as if it was defective in some sort of way. He was far from it. The reality was he just did not enjoy social gatherings with other Officers, particularly Humans. He didn't have anything personal against them, it wasn't as if they were Klingons. He just did not truly enjoy himself around them. He did not understand their humor, their culture, nor their dietary choices. If it were not for Yamok sauce, the Cardassian would not have been able to consume the Terran food items that were offered on a regular basis on the vessel. He took a deep breathe and steadied himself as he looked up and made his way into the mess hall with a pleasant look on his face.
[Bobbie Sue's Quarters]
All Bobbie wanted was sleep. With Soren. That made two things, but she was too tired to count now that the Adrenalin had worn off. It was her own fault for staying up so late, but she wasn't sorry. Not really. Or she wouldn't be after a few hours. She curled up against Soren and went back to sleep.
[On board the Prowler]
The SWORD team sat around a conference table, going over the recent drill. Their job had been to analyze how the different departments responded and find ways to both improve reactions and get around the ship without being noticed. It was the best way she could think of to give SWORD a practice drill along with the rest of the ship.
Alora was pleased with security. Alex had done an excellent job of preparing his department for combat. She smiled at her husband, who had been invited to join them. "You'll make it hard for anyone to sneak aboard during an attack, but I think we came up with a couple of ways to get around you." She handed Alex a PADD. "This is based on our observations today." While it wasn't her job--or intel's--to analyze performance, she was keenly aware that with the poor way the Romulan Ambassador handled the knowledge that her aide was a Tal'Shiar agent, they were going to meet resistance before they got close to Romulus. She wanted to protect Alex and SWORD--especially as they had been key to outing the Tal'Shiar and their connection to the Elachi.
Alora wasn't about to tell the captain how to run her ship, or any of the department heads. Most of her observations were based on her own experience, and that of her team. But she knew the information would be of value to Alex. "I'm not sure how much--if any--to pass on to Aisaka, but you should be aware of what we've seen."
The discussion turned to possible tactics, and how SWORD could be of use during an attack. At the same time, they were keenly aware that the Prowler had all the evidence that needed to be taken to the Romulan Senate. Everything but the Ambassador's aide. For that, Alora relied on other sources.
Taiga stood up from her table and returned her bowl to the replicator. Ryuuji followed her as they made their way towards the door of the mess.
"I'll see you later" Taiga said as she turned to step into a turbolift.
"Yeah, be careful up there" Ryuuji said as he smiled at her before heading the other way heading towards the flight deck.
Posting By
Captain Taiga Aisaka
Commanding Officer
Commander Nicolas Trigman 'Trigger'
Executive Officer
Commander Alora Knight
Chief Intelligence Officer
Lieutenant Commander Marcus Decius 'Gladius'
Commander Air Group
Lieutenant JG Jasad Yuvek
Chief Flight Control Officer
Captain Chiyo Shimada
Marine Commander
1st Lieutenant Elizabeth F. "Liz" Beurling
Marine Vice Commander
Chief Warrant Officer Karuta Roromiya
Air Boss
Lieutenant Commander Ryuuji Takasu
Chief Flight Deck Officer
Lieutenant JG Silica Tetsuhiko 'Twin-Tails'
Fighter Pilot
Lieutenant JG Fubuki Kuchikukan 'Snowflake'
Fighter Pilot
Lieutenant Iowa Riverside 'Grey Ghost'
Fighter Pilot
Ensign Nozomi Kusuda 'Gemini'
Fighter Pilot
Lieutenant Iowa Riverside 'Grey Ghost'
Fighter Pilot
Lieutenant Bucannon Rogers "Van Winkle"
Fighter Pilot
Alice Shimada
Civilian Child
Mikoto Roromiya
Civilian Child
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