Things I Wouldn't Do
Posted on Sun Dec 20th, 2015 @ 4:17am by Lieutenant Nick Marcinko & IKS Ning'Tao
Mission:
Further Challenges
Location: Saturnalia
* Saturnalia *
After her run-in with Zikar, then meeting Eldren, Kaeli has departed Saturnalia. She wanted to get our before Zikar so she could find a spot and watch him as he left, instead of being the one watched. He had finally gone and once he was in the lift and out of sight, she went back inside the bar. So far, in less than twenty-four hours, she’d discovered Suresh, Zikar, and Eldren. Two she hadn’t wanted to see again and one she knew she would see. With her luck, they’d all turn up like bad pennies, though Eldren was going to be a good person to know, she suspected. She settled back in at a table and Shelly appeared.
“Welcome back honey. I’ll get your drink and a little word of advice too. You seem to have a knack for picking out the most dangerous men in the place. A little thing like you? I’d watch my back.”
Shelly hurried off, leaving Kaeli to puzzle out what she’d said. She found it interesting that the waitress had included all of those men in the same group. Suresh and ZIkar she could agree with but Eldren? He seemed like a nice fellow. She scanned the room and seeing no one she knew, she kept an eye on the door. Joe had said he was coming onto the station and she’d sent word she would be here.
“Yo, Sphinx,” Joe said as he neared the table. “This is my kind of place!” He sat across from her, pulling the chair around backward putting the back of it to his chest. “Big ass station, right?”
“You said a mouthful sweetie.” She smiled and suddenly Shelly appeared with her drink.
The waitress placed the glass before Kaeli, but her eyes were all for Joe. “Who’s your friend here? And can I get you something?”
He chuckled. “Bourbon, neat. And if you want me to get you anything, you just let ol’ Joe know,” he said with a wink.
“I get off at 0200 hours.” Shelly winked at him and strolled away, taking her time to give him a good look.
Kaeli snorted as she looked back at Joe. “Still got it, killer. She seems like a decent sort, too. Was looking out for me earlier.”
“Yeah, well if things go well, she may be getting off at 0230, 0245, 0250...you catch my drift,” he said with a few waggles of his eyebrows. He turned to catch another look at Shelly before she disappeared behind the bar then turned back to Kaeli. “So, what’s up? Anything good? And don’t tell anybody, but I got totally lost an hour ago. Wouldn’t have been able to find my way out of my own ass with a compass and a map.”
“Aww, I promise.” Kaeli smiled, her almost-never-seen soft side showing as it often did around Joe. “I’ve had what you might call an interesting day but I’ll get to that. Tell me Joe, do the Marines know you’re here?”
His head whipped around quickly. “Holy shit. I thought you were saying that they were walking in the door, or something.” He slouched forward on the chair a second. “Damn. Don’t do that. And, no, they don’t. And I don’t expect to run into any of them,” he said, rapping the wooden table with his knuckles, “knock on wood.”
“Down here I think you’re safe enough from them. It’s funny, it seems all of us but Ro have targets on our asses and aside from the Marines, not exactly expected.” She fell silent as Shelly returned with his drink and a folded napkin.With a wink she departed. “So? Open it,” Kaeli urged.
He suddenly felt nervous around Kaeli and scooped the napkin up, holding it close to him as he opened it. “Aaaaah, ha ha!” he said with a loud laugh. “Score!” he said in an oddly out-of-character high pitch. “Well, I know where I’ll be lodging tonight and it sure as hell won’t be my bunk with all the stinky bastards--uh, present company not included, of course.”
“Hey!” Kaeli laughed, however. “Jarad and I have quarters here on the station. I see enough of cramped ship’s quarters. I want a real shower that’s big enough to turn around in too. A real bed and a room I can’t reach both sides of when I stretch out my arms.” She motioned to the napkin. “Good thing you went to see Jarad recently.”
He furrowed his brow. “Well, yeah, I thought we all had to go see him regularly. But I’m as healthy as an ox. Don’t worry, my heart is healthy enough for sex, but I appreciate you worrying about my safety.” Realizing the drink had been sitting there not being consumed, he seized it and began to drink.
She gave a low chuckle, loving his carefree mentality. Then again, he didn’t have a Cardassian Legate pointing a phaser at his head, figuratively speaking. “Look, Joe, I need a favor.” She lowered her voice and leaned closer. “You know Jarad’s past. There’s someone here who might get a little too curious if he realizes you know him and Drekkar. For your sake, if any Cardassians you don’t know strike up a conversation, ditch them.”
“Uh, why? Because he was a butcher?” He rolled his eyes. “That is an honorable profession, Kaeli. Seriously, you guys should cut the man some slack. And if some of the local Cardies have a problem with that, well, I’ll just have to show ‘em what I can do.”
“This one’s a powerful man, so best avoid him. He’s got other things to worry about so I’m hoping he won’t be any trouble before we take off. I’d describe him but then...not to sound racist, but I might as well be describing Drekkar.” She sipped her drink and smiled at Joe. “What are you doing tomorrow?”
“Hopefully round 15 with Shelly, unless you need ol’ Joe for somethin’?”
“After you’re done with her. Take Rhian to a movie or something? Rafael took her out yesterday and got her some decent clothes. Just get her off the ship for a bit. I have some old business to take care of, then I can take her off your hands.” Kaeli looked down into her empty glass. “That went fast. No more for me though, otherwise you’ll have to pour me into a glass to get me out of here.”
“Babysitting? Really?” His glass clunked onto the table as he sighed heavily. He swirled the drink around in his glass. “Fine, but only because it came from you. I guess it’s a good thing I actually like you.”
“I’ve always thought so. You don’t have to hang out all day, especially since I might need you for some more important things later in the day.” she smiled back at Joe. “I owe you one. I’d have Ro do it but he’s down on Archadia at the beach with some chick who, finally, is not Olivia.” She frowned suddenly. “Though this one does have red hair. Damn. I thought he was getting past that.”
“There’s something to be said about ‘dem redheads, though, whoo!” He slugged the last of his drink. “I could tell you a few stories that might curl your toes.”
“I have no doubt.” A sudden thought occurred to her and she reached out to touch his arm. An image of Zikar passed from her to Joe. “That’s the man you need to watch out for.”
His arm jerked back. “Oh! Don’t do that, man, it’s freaky!”
“I know but it’s important. If you do see him, I want to know, okay?” She didn’t mentioned Zikar’s hunt for his wife, a tidbit she had picked up while he had held her there by his table.
Joe rubbed his arm where she had touched him, like some sort of infection might sprout from the spot. “Want me to kill him?”
“Not yet, maybe later. The last thing we need to do is start a war or land in the brig. If all goes well, he’ll see reason and leave our boys alone. Now I have to get along and it’s almost the magic hour. You two have fun tonight and don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”
“I--uh...do you, like, have a list? ‘Cause I like to do a bunch of things and if I’m not allowed to do some of ‘em, I don’t want to get on your bad side.”
Kaeli opened her mouth to answer and for a few beats, had no clue how to address that. “You’ve known me long enough to know, Joe, there’s almost nothing I won’t do. Well, there is that one thing but never mind that. Just go enjoy yourself.” She rose and patted his shoulder.
As she walked away he turned. “Well? What is it?” He slumped as she just waved a dismissive hand and kept walking. “Fuck. Now what?” He looked at his drink, then to Kaeli’s back, then back to his drink. “Maybe I just don’t tell her?” he said with a shrug.
“Tell her what?” Shelly asked as she appeared at the table.
She caught Joe off guard, but recovered quickly as Shelly placed another bourbon in front of him. “Uh, what you had put in the napkin?” he said, questioning what was coming out of his mouth. Then, “Yeah. That’s it. The napkin, thing. She doesn’t need to know.”
Shelly laughed and shook her head. “Whatever you say, big guy. I doubt she cares, she’s got her own issues.” She winked at him as she turned to go. “I’ll be out in fifteen.”
He growled. “I’m definitely looking forward to it,” he said, adding the punctuation of downing the entire glass of bourbon. ...then immediately regretting it.
***************
Kaeli
The Sphinx
Joe Ferguson
Don Juan
Shelley
Joining The Marines (Well, One Of Them)
