Must Be a Full Moon

Posted on Mon May 11th, 2015 @ 3:45am by Lieutenant Bryce Kendrick & Lieutenant Riley Sukotav & Ensign Six of Ten

Mission: Breaking New Ground
Location: The Wormhole Bar
Timeline: Current

* * The Wormhole Bar * *

A crowd had gathered in a tight knot inside The Wormhole bar. They were all talking at once, their voices blending into a buzz like so many bees. Above the hum, several rose in both pitch and volume, a female voice notably among them.

"Back off unless you want that mouth of yours ripped off!"

Whoever the woman was, she was angry and there was no mistaking it. Her comment got a round of cheers and whistles, along with shouts of encouragement. Whoever she addressed took her comment badly and a string of curses erupted, the voice deep and guttural.

"Young slip of a bitch thinks she can take me!?" A large man stood, shadows on his face, but if nothing else were obvious it was that he was enormous. "Come on over here, you Borg reject, if you think you're able! Maybe those implants can overcome the fear which you feel."

He moved into the light, now appearing to be human, but his deep booming voice matched his enormous frame making him no less lethal than a Nausicaan.

"Now, now, big fella'," Rio said as he moved into the center of the group. "I'm not so sure that she actually wants to fight. I'm sure she's simply trying to impress you with her bravado." He shoved a large glass into the man's chest. "Here, drink with me! Drink to her--"

The shove from the man was lightning quick, but it did short work of Rio, tossing him back onto an old wooden table, breaking it into pieces. The group surrounding them began to whistle and applaud him as the brute turned back to the small dark haired woman with a snarl.

"Come on, metalhead. Think you can take me? I'll give you one shot before I rip that pretty face of yours off and toss you to the trash where you belong."

"Bring it!" The words were an angry hiss. She squared off facing the man, crouching lower now. Movement off to her right registered at the edge of her vision. The implant went to work, fixing the face in her mind in an instant and it was a face she knew.

Blowing a ring of smoke from the cigar in his hand, Bryce stepped toward both of them and spoke plainly. “You know, big guy,” he said, looking back and forth between the two, “you do realize she’s quite a bit stronger than she looks, right? I mean, she could probably toss you on your ass and not break stride.”

“I’d like to see her try,” the man blustered. “You defending her kind? I should just kill you both!”

“In your dreams, asshole,” Six hissed at him and stepped closer.

“Here! Take this!” someone shouted. They pressed a wickedly sharp blade into Six’s hand and she raised it to point at the man. The appearance of the blade brought a hush over the crowd as the man circled to his left, bringing him closer to Bryce. The cigar smoke served to piss him off even more and he took a swing, barely missing Bryce’s throat.

Bryce managed to side-step just in time but slipped in a left handed jab to the man’s rib cage followed by an elbow to the back of his head, sending the man toppling onto his face on a nearby table. “That was a mistake, fella’,” he said as he placed his cigar on another table, ash end out, then grabbed the man’s collar to bring him to a standing position. “I think you’ve had too many drinks. Maybe you should sit this one out?’

Rio had disentangled himself from the remains of the table and was now on his feet. “I’ll get him outta here.”

Six stepped up to the man and raised the point of the blade. “Next time they may not be here to save you.” She stood her ground as Rio wrestled the man to the door. Slowly, the crowd dispersed, people moving back to tables and drinks, and the conversations resumed. “Thanks,” she said to the bystander who’d contributed the knife and handed it over.

Bryce watched until the behemoth was out the door, took his cigar and went back to his table. Apparently his beer had been spilled, evidenced by broken glass next to his chair. Waving a server over, he ordered another as he seated himself and the crowd resumed their normal activities. They seemed a bit put off, however--it wasn’t much of a fight.

Six walked over to his table, sidestepping the broken glass. “Thanks, Bryce. I was a little surprised to see you here. What gives?”

“Master at Arms, Starbase 900, at your service,” he said, offering the other seat to her. “I’ve been here a while. Was on the Hammond and decided I wanted to be on the base instead. Kind of a cushy spot, I have to admit, but I like it. Keeps me busy.”

The server brought his drink and he took a few gulps. “So, kid, when did you get out here? Your ship docked or something?”

She sat down across from him and ordered a whiskey. “I arrived a few hours ago. They’ve recalled the Evariste, sending it down to Tholian space but they wanted to keep me out here. So, 900 it is. Apparently, the rabble here still has some issues with my kind. Thanks for jumping in though. It’s good to see you again.”

He smiled. “It helps to have a familiar face at a new posting.” He looked back over his shoulder at the door where the man had been taken out. “Don’t worry about people like that. Yeah, the Borg, or former Borg,” he said, gesturing to her with his glass, “aren’t well received in the big DQ, but that’s not who you are. It’s who you used to be. Besides,” he took another drink, “I’ll be sure to set ‘em straight if need be.”

Six smiled finally. Her drink arrived and she lifted it, taking a sip. “Here’s mud in your eye.” Then she laughed. “Sorry, I’ve been watching westerns this week on the way back here.” She considered his words a moment and nodded. “Not being well received is nothing new Bryce, but thanks for the offer. I will, however, try to avoid displays like this going forward. a little show of what I’ll do, though, the word will get around.”

“Just don’t let the word float all the way to the top,” he said with a wink. “Can’t have you being busted down or reprimanded just for standing up for yourself. So...be smart about it. Otherwise, I think you’ll like it here. I do.” They sat for a moment, looking into their drinks. “Have they assigned your quarters yet? Was just wondering if you were moved in enough for a tour. I’m off today and tomorrow. I guess I could spare some time for a pipsqueak like you.” He grinned. She was pretty short, next to him, but what little time he’d spent with her before she had earned his respect. He felt comfortable around her, which he normally didn’t around others. It really did make him happy to have an old friend come around again.

“All my things were delivered about an hour ago. That’s when I managed to find this place. What a welcome, huh?” She shrugged. “Anyone else I know here?”

“Been here one hour and your first stop was this place?” he asked, then scoffed. “You little shit magnet, you,” he said jokingly. “Uh, well, Lt. Riley is here now, in Sciences. Where are you posted?”

She was reaching for her glass but at the mention of Riley, her hand stopped halfway there. “He is? Great…” Finally she took a drink and lowered the glass. “This tour, I am in….science. They still are sticking me in ‘safe’ jobs for now, so I’m the new resident language expert. Well won’t this be fun when he finds out.”

“When who finds out what?” a familiar voice asked. Riley himself appeared next to the table. “Hey Bryce, sorry I’m late I was….” and there he caught sight of Six. His tongue seemed to shrivel to nothing. “Six…” he managed to say.

“Riley, hello. It’s been a while.” She shot Bryce a look, then went back to her drink.

“Looks like this will be fun,” he said, hiding a smile behind his large glass. “Pull up a chair, Riley,” he finally said. “Mind the broken glass. Six here decided to try to assert her dominance upon arriving on station.”

Riley took the empty seat, then waved for a drink. “Oh?” He looked from one to the other and, sensing Six’s diminished but lingering anger, he frowned. “Oh...one of those..sorry.” To his great relief, his drink arrived and he gulped half of it without stopping. The warmth hit his stomach and began to spread, bringing with it a loosening of his tongue. “It’ll get better, once people see who you really are. If not, I’ll sic Bryce on them.”

“I see it still works.” Six’s smile returned for a moment and Riley’s face turned a rosy hue.

Bryce couldn’t help but smirk at the two. He shook his head at Riley’s reaction and looked back to Six. “So, kiddo, feel like wandering around? You’ll need to get familiar at some point.”

“I do,” Six answered, glad of the distraction. “Tomorrow will be fine. I need to report in to Commander Leroy but that can be done first thing, then I’ll be free the rest of the day.”

Riley was equally glad. “He knows this place inside out, so he can show you everything. You two should join us for dinner so she can meet Reva.”

Six looked back at Bryce, suddenly a little more embarrassed. “Umm….we’ll see, Riley.”

“Hoo boy,” Bryce said under his breath. “Awkward.” One last gulp of his beer and a slam onto the table broke things up. “Going anywhere soon? You can regale me with stories from your last posting, or more fights you’ve been in because of your uniqueness.” He waved a server over again. “I’m buying the drinks if you’re spinning the tales.”

“Then I have some time.” She gave Bryce a grateful smile at the distraction. “And you two can tell me where you’ve been since we were last in the same place. I also want to hear about Reva.” Now that Riley was talking, she was curious. The waitress arrived to get drink orders and once she left, the story swapping began.

*******************
Ensign Six
Rabblerouser

Lt. Bryce Kendrick
Taking Care of Business

Lt. Riley Sukotav
Less Than Smooth