Posted by Fleet Captain Alexander Cochrane (Commanding Officer) in PreSim - Event Horizon Station - Time Off For Good Behaviour

Posted by Commander Shedda Mal’athar (Executive Officer) in PreSim - Event Horizon Station - Time Off For Good Behaviour

Posted by Fleet Captain Alexander Cochrane (Commanding Officer) in PreSim - Event Horizon Station - Time Off For Good Behaviour
Posted by… suppressed (14) by the Post Ghost! 👻

The station Event Horizon was still new in the quadrant. As such, it was constantly being added to, remodeled, upgraded, and all the other words that conveyed continuous change. Fortunately those changes were almost always a positive. The station was also the main rendezvous point for ships and crews from the other side of the worm hole to stage and prepare for their explorations in the Delta. The station was technically a Federation facility; but due to its proximity to the worm hole and it’s location in the Delta Quadrant so far form the nearest Federation border, it had quickly become a more multi-representative place than anything else. True, Star Fleet was in charge of the station operations and security. And the majority of the populace was from the Federation. But it was not at all unusual to see beings form all over known-space inside the gigantic station’s Promenade or other places beings could mingle.

As the largest Star Fleet vessel in the quadrant with the highest -ranking Star Fleet officer in the quadrant as it’s CO, the USS Manhattan had become the unofficial flagship of the Federation presence in the sector and beyond. As a science vessel, it had conducted research and exploratory missions that had already advanced knowledge of the Quadrant exponentially. As a Diplomatic presence, the ship and crew had made many new acquaintances, a few new friends, and a handful of… well… not ‘enemies’ per se; but definitely some had taken exception to the presence of the Federation in the Delta.

Both station and vessel- docked for resupply and repairs after a several month long exploratory mission- sat in a slow rotation half a million kilometers from the point where the worm hole would open every four hours. The ship had been docked for four days, with another fourteen on the schedule. Time enough for the crew to get some much deserved rest and relaxation…

And time for the Captain to catch up on some much needed but very unwelcome administrative needs.

Cochrane, CO

Alex wasn’t the only one with administrative tasks to catch up on. There were endless supply requests, upgrades, new equipment to be installed, updated databases, shore leave to coordinate, and guests to over see. It had been a very busy four days at Event Horizon, and Shedda had only spoken to Alex in passing as the captain went about the business of running a star ship, and Shedda went about hers supporting him in those tasks.

One of those things was to make sure that the Captain was also getting his share of leave and down time. Alex was a workaholic. Shedda knew the type, so was she. So it was with quite a bit of irony that she stepped up to his ready room door and pressed the chime. They had a standing agreement to check in on each other.

Cmdr. Mal’athar, XO

The door slid open silently to reveal Cochrane’s office. Seated at the desk was the Fleet Captain, eyes scrolling over a PaDD with only a cursory glance up as the XO walked in. He tipped the PaDD towards one of the two chairs in front of the desk and went back to reading for about half a minute.

Shedda entered and took a seat and waited for him to finish what he was doing.

Cochrane finally set the device aside and looked at Shedda. “So is this a ‘Dammit Alex you forgot to eat.’ visit? Or is it a ‘Oh, and here is still some more bureaucratic garbage for you to deal with.’ visit?” and he chuckled.

Cochrane, CO

The XO laughed, “Both. You forgot to eat and you haven’t scheduled any down time for yourself yet. And more,” she listed the PaDD in her hand, “garbage. Requiring your sign off on it specifically. Lt Byzi’s sister and niece are on the other side of the worm hole. Byzi didn’t think they could make it, but his sister was able to arrange it last minute. Security won’t let them through to their transport without approval from you.”

Cmdr. Mal’athar, XO

Cochrane shook his head and scowled. “So much for the freedom of sentient life to move as they wish.” He picked up his PaDD and read the message form Security at the station. He grumbled something in Klingon and then signed off the request… taking great pains to ensure the ‘Fleet Captain’ field was filled in correctly. Under the ‘Comments’ section he typed ‘Any further delay in the reunification of the officer and his family will be most unacceptable.’ He sat the PaDD aside and looked at Shedda. “Ok, so what other fires do I need to extinguish before I grab a sandwich and take over the bridge?” Cochrane was notorious among the crew for taking watches when someone- especially junior officers- were slated for the spot but had an opportunity for a break or maybe a call home. The current shift was supposed to be filled by Ensign D’esfrain; but Cochrane ordered her off the ship when he found out her girlfriend was going to try to become her fiancé.

Cochrane, CO

Shedda grinned she knew why Alex was taking a bridge shift. D’esfrain’s surprise was a well kept secret among the crew. “No, I’ve been able to field most things coming through. I’m taking a shift down in the geology lab. They have an experiment that needs watching, and I’m not doing anything else. Well not anything else that I can’t do from there. Oh, and I have been informed by one of the staff,” she rolled her eyes, “that Chef Harv has threatened us with bodily harm if we skip dinner in the mess again.” Shedda shrugged, “Could be the staff trying to head off a bad temper, or could be true. Never know.”

Cmdr. Mal’athar, XO

Cochrane rolled his eyes as well and sighed heavily. “I swear that for as good of a chef as he is, I sometimes wonder if it’s worth the headache.” and he shut his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Fine.” he said after a long pause. “Dinner. I need a break today anyway. Meet you there at 1900. That work for your experiment schedule?”

Cochrane, CO

“It does,” Shedda confirmed. She got a wicked look in her eye, “You know, between the two of us, we might convince Harv to take a small break and go explore the station. The crew can certainly fend for themselves for a few hours. Though, we might end up being the main ingredients in tomorrow’s breakfast.”

Cmdr. Mal’athar, XO

Cochrane chuckled and said “Too true.: He looked at his desk as his comms chirped and he scowled. “I have to take this. Keep me apprised of any personnel changes. And I will see you in the Mess at 1900.”

Cochrane, CO

Shedda stood, “I’ll see you then.” She slipped out of his office so he could answer his comm. Stepping back onto the bridge brought a small line of officers with PaDDs needing sign offs, answered questions, and approvals.

Cmdr. Mal’athar, XO

The rest of the day was mundane… thankfully. Cochrane made actual headway and lessened his administration workload from ‘overwhelming’ to ‘moderately oppressive’. So it was that at 1857 he walked into the Officer’s Mess. He was actually not in uniform, having managed to get to his quarters and take a shower and change. He was dressed in black, short sleeved collared shirt with three buttons at the neck; the top one of which was open. Dark gray slacks and black shoes and belt completed the ensemble, and he made his way to his usual table at the far back and off to the side. There was, technically, a ‘Captain’s Table’ directly in front of one of the large windows; but Alex had never used it. He preferred to leave the view for the crew.

Cochrane, CO

As the CO took his seat, the door to the kitchen swung open and out walked the acerbic ship’s chef, Chef Harv. He was carrying a tray on which sat fresh baked bread and homemade butter, as well as a cup of his signature seafood chowder.

He walked to the table where Cochrane sat and set the tray on the next table over. As he unloaded the food and a glass of iced tea, he looked at Alex and said “So where is the Giant Green Goddess tonight, huh?”

Harv, Chef

Shedda walked up, her face alight with excitement. It had been an excellent shift in the lab. Her hair was slightly out of its bun, and she still had a lab coat on over her uniform. She had lost track of the time, so she hadn’t had time to change. She was on time however. “Green Goddess?” Her brows raised as she looked at Alex over Harv’s shoulder. She stepped to the side and slid into the seat across from Alex.

Cmdr. Mal’athar, XO

“Yeah… like the salad dressing.”Harv said without looking at Shedda. “An acquired taste.” He nodded once at Cochrane and then, as he turned to leave, he looked at the XO and gave her a half-smile.

Harv - Chef

Shedda gave a moment to consider Harv might be sick. She would ask Hudson to check in on him. Harv almost smiled at her. He had to be sick. The only time he had done that was when she had been here with Koro, so she was certain it was for the child’s benefit. But Harv wasn’t insulting her or telling her what she was doing wrong. So she’d take it.

She refrained from telling Harv most of his food was an acquired taste, but she wouldn’t risk his culinary wrath. So she gave a non-commital “Ah,” and returned the half smile.

Alex snorted softly and then hid a slight grin behind his water glass. He then set the glass down and looked at Mal’athar. “Anyways… how was the lab?”

Cochrane, CO

Shedda’s eyes lit up. “Wonderful! We were testing the harmonic resonances of these crystals we found on Thatov VII.” Shedda leaned in excitedly, “I’m going back tomorrow. We think thet may have the crystalline matrix pattern to be a replacement for Dilithum Crystals. We are testing their resilience to power flow tomorrow.”

Cmdr. Mal’athar, XO

“Dilithium replacement? That would certainly be a helluva discovery.” Cochrane said with more than passing interest. “If the tests start indicating that may be a possibility, let me know. I’m sure the Federation would want to start even informal talks if there was a chance of that.”

Cochrane, CO

“It’s exciting. It can certainly handle the harmonics, we will see tomorrow if it can conduct the energy stream. You should come by the lab tomorrow and see the tests.” There was an animation to her, the joy of discovery and possibility. “I’m not sure it would be a wide spread solution though. For us, here in the Delta it would be a great emergency solution. We have only found it on Thatov VII, and the vein we found was small. But we didn’t survey the whole planet. If the tests are encouraging we could swing by Thatov again. It’s not very far out of our way of our normal patrol.”

Cmdr. Mal’athar, XO

“I’ll try to be there.” Cochrane said. “And I’m sure we will be directed that way if the experiments show any positive results.” Cochrane looked out the window for a moment and then looked back at Shedda. “So how is everything not related to the ship going? How is your father? Have you spoken to him recently?”

Cochrane, CO

“We write frequently, but I haven’t spoken to him, since I got the news about Maava,” Shedda stared at her glass a moment, the loss was still very raw. “He was supposed to come out, but decided to wait. I hope he’ll agree to come the next time we are at the station. It’s not far to the wormhole from Delotha.” She took a sip of the water and then smiled. “Outside of the ship, my life is rather dull,” she laughed, “I mean hobbies, just don’t compare to what we are discovering out here,” and she waved out the window. “What about you?”

Cmdr. Mal’athar, XO

“Spoke to my sister a few days ago.” Cochrane said. “My parents a few weeks back. Everyone is doing well. My mother has been offered a residency at the Bajoran Literary Conservatory. But I don’t think she and my father want to leave Vulcan for that long.”

Cochrane, CO

Shedda nodded thoughtfully. “I guess it happens to us all eventually. The excitement of new beginnings, new places, just doesn’t have the same appeal as being home does. How is your sister doing?”

Cmdr. Mal’athar, XO

“She is well.” Alex replied with a smile. He had always been proud of his twin sister; a fact few people who knew him were not aware of. “She is being transferred next month. Some project lead for Command. Very hush-hush; but she was really excited about it.” He looked at Shedda thoughtfully for a moment and then said “So when do you think the idea of being home versus ‘new beginnings and new places’ will wear off for you?” with a slight chuckle.

Cochrane, CO

“Well that certainly sounds exciting. Good for her.” Shedda tipped her head back and forth. “Hopefully never,” she grinned. “But I guess when I’m too old to keep climbing into ruins and staying hunched over for hours and days meticulously brushing dirt off of thousand year old objects.” There was a gleam in her eye as she talked about it. Even though she wasn’t actively working in science anymore, she still loved it. “What about you?”

Cmdr. Mal’athar, XO

Alex smiled and a single, muffled laugh chuckle escaped him as he turned his head and looked out the window. “Oh… I imagine I will probably be doing this until they make me stop.” He laughed again, softly, and then looked at Sheeda. “And then I’ll probably get a job doing it privately.” He gave her a rueful, but humorous shake of his head. “What can I say? I’m addicted to space. Besides, I haven’t found anything to keep me anywhere for good. So this life is a good fit.”

Cochrane, CO

Shedda shared a humorous smile with him. “I know what you mean. I love my father’s home, where I was raised, but it doesn’t draw me back like home does for others. I imagine when I’m forced to retire, I’ll join some private archeology group and dig around until my body won’t let me. I’ll die of boredom soon after that.” Shedda laughed, but it was true. “Maybe I’ll get lucky and some local group here in the Delta will take me on. I like it here.”

Shrugging out of the lab coat, she draped it across the back of her chair. “I’ve never asked before, what drew you to space?”

Cmdr. Mal’athar, XO

Cochrane shrugged. “It’s not really space that drew me into Star Fleet. It’s service. My family has generations of service members in it. All the way back to the Napoleonic Wars. It’s always been in our blood… God, King, and Country and all that.” and he smiled as he took a drink. “We’ve always served our people, defended them with dedication and honor… which is why my biological maternal figure’s actions were so… so… heinous.” He scowled and took another drink.

Cochrane, CO

“I can understand that. My father raised me to be loyal, and take care of the people around me, but to never do so blindly,” Shedda mused. “It’s ironic, because my mother probably feels the same way about me that you do your mother. Or she would if she knew where I was and if I’m alive.”

Cmdr. Mal’athar, XO

“If she is anything like mine, be glad she doesn’t.” Alex said ruefully. “I’d pay real money to be able to lose her.” and shook his head again.

Cochrane, CO

Shedda sighed, “I only know what my father has told me. I never met her, and I don’t want to met her. I’m grateful she was not a part of my life. I do wonder sometimes if she knows what happened to us. The Syndicate has eyes everywhere, but if she did, she never tried to contact me.” Shedda took a long drink. “Enough about horrid family members. Anything exciting in your life right now?”

Commanding the ship was exciting, but they needed more than command and duty to fill their days. Hence their regular dinner meetings.

Cmdr. Mal’athar, XO

Cochrane paused and then gave a partial grin. “Well… maybe? I was on a subspace conference last week and there was a Captain giving a brief on some new fleet initiatives. She was… impressive.” and he smiled. “I reached out and we had a nice chat. We may meet up the next time I’m in the Alpha Quadrant. “

Cochrane, CO

Shedda smirked, “So I get to run the next mission on my own? You’re going to take an actual vacation?”

Cmdr. Mal’athar, XO

“Maybe.” Cochrane said with a laugh. “But IF I do, you better not make any galaxy-shatteringvdiscoveriws without me. I mean hell… I didn’t come all the way out here for the sense of community.” and he laughed again.

Cochrane, CO

Shedda laughed. It was a delightful sound, born of her heritage, that people wanted to listen to. It naturally made people envious to know what the captain had said to produce such a sound. Shedda wasn’t even trying, not that she would. “I can’t promise anything, but I’ll do my best. I mean, if we did, it would be the making of my career. They might actually give me my own ship.” She laughed quietly. “We need some kind of long range transporter so I can yank you back just in case.”

Shedda glanced toward the kitchen briefly. It wasn’t like him to not bring bread and irritate her over her preference in soup. Hmmm, had she offended Harv again? She hadn’t been late or made any requests about the meal. She’d come to eat in the mess regularly and been polite. The man was a frustrating conundrum. Though he probably felt the same way about her. If he was being nice that day.
Cmdr. Mal’athar, XO

Whether coincidence, shared thought process, or him eavesdropping; the notorious chef of the Manhattan came through the screen doors from the kitchen carrying a tray with bread and two bowls, each covered in a silver lid.

“Soup and and bread for ya, Skipper.” He looked at the XO and said “And so you quit complaining about it-” and he lifted the lid off of her bowl. Instead of the normal seafood chowder- which was the dish everyone except the XO clamored for- there was instead a reddish-yellow dish with visible chunks of something in it. The smell came up as the lid was removed, and the smell was instantly familiar… Orion chili. It smelled almost exactly like her father’s.

Harv - Chef

Shedda’s eyes widened with indignation. She never complained. If Harv gave her his seafood chowder, she ate it. She didn’t like it, but she never said anything. The man’s ego was too delicate. She would only say something if she was allergic, which she wasn’t. It kept the peace. How dare he accuse her of that. It was like he went out of his way to make her look bad in front of the Captain. Her expression changed as soon as the aroma hit her nose though. It could be described in one word - Shock.

She’d been missing her father a lot lately, but she certainly hadn’t told Harv that, or anyone else. It was just the nature of the work. This was her favorite thing her father made. It was still creepy how Harv did that. She blinked once and then looked up at Harv, “Thank you, Harv. This was very kind of you.” There was absolutely no mistaking the sincerity in her voice, or how touched she was by his effort. Honestly, knowing Harv’s past with the Syndicate, she never would have expected him to make any Orion dish, just out of principle. It wasn’t a problem because it wasn’t like Shedda was overly familiar with Orion cuisine anyway. But this… this was an instant reminder of home and security and love and her father.

Cmdr. Mal’athar, XO

Alex looked from the XO to the Chef and back again before picking up a piece of bread and taking a bite to hide the slight grin that threatened to break across his face.

After Harv left, Cochrane took a drink and looked at the chili. “That, um, got quite the reaction. What is it?”

Cochrane, CO

Shedda’s eyes flicked back to Alex, away from the now retreated surly chef. She looked down at the bowl as if confused how it appeared there. “Orion chili,” she said looking up. “The only strictly Orion dish my father ever made. Comfort food I guess you would call it. Other parents would bake cookies or something when things were… rough. My dad made chili.” She stirred it slightly with her spoon before taking a bite. The flavor made her smile softly. Almost exactly like her fathers except Harv was missing her father’s ‘special ingredient’. She appreciated its absence, it allowed her father’s to remain special.

Cmdr. Mal’athar, XO

Bump

“You know… in all the time I have known Chef, he never has failed to amaze me. I have no idea how he does it; but he will walk out of the kitchen with a dish for a crew member who has never set foot in here but who is having some kind of emotional distress… and he will set down the perfect dish to bring them solace.” He shook his head and smiled. “No idea… but how did he do with the chili?”

Cochrane, CO

“Uncanny how exact it is. Except for one thing.” Shedda glanced towards the doors to the kitchen and then back. “Black magic,” she laughed, but it probably wasn’t far off. “He told Sair’s son Koro it was magic. I haven’t ruled out the possibility.”

She took another bite and then narrowed her eyes at the kitchen again, thinking. Then focusing back on Alex, “You know, he was close to Faye. Maybe she set up some sort of surveillance for him, and that’s how he always knows.”

Cmdr. Mal’athar, XO

Alex chuckled and shook his head. “Nope. He was doing that long before Faye was around. And from what I could gather? He’s always done it. Even in culinary school.”

Cochrane, CO

“Hmmmm, I’ll have to go with magic then. Oh! Ooorrrrr,” she grinned, “maybe he has Betazoid heritage somewhere in his family. That would explain it.”

She nodded towards his bowl, “I’d ask how it is, but I already know the answer.”

Cmdr. Mal’athar, XO

Bump

“So then I will ask you. How is it? And what did you do to get Harv to be… you know… nice-ish?” and he chuckled

Cochrane, CO

Shedda took another bite before answering. “It’s wonderful actually. Almost like my father’s. It’s missing his secret ingredient. I like that though.” She took a sip of her water. “I honestly have no idea. I thought you said something to him before I got here.” She glanced at the kitchen doors. “I mean I have been trying, Alex. I swear I have, but it doesn’t seem to help.”

Cmdr. Mal’athar, XO

“Well… he hasn’t stabbed you. Take that as a good sign., I suppose.” and he laughed.

Cochrane, CO

Shedda laughed, “You aren’t wrong. I mean I have no intention of doing anything to make him want to.” She dipped a piece of the bread into the chili. It was heaven, though she tried really hard not to show it. “Oh! Did you know Harv knows magic tricks. Like slight of hand?”

Cmdr. Mal’athar, XO

Cochrane’s eyebrows furrowed and he said “Slight of hand? Really? How do you know?”, envisioning Harv doing card tricks and trying not to laugh.

Cochrane, CO

“Before Sair left, I was watching Koro for a day for her. He was hungry and I brought him in. Harv started doing magic tricks for him. Stole my earing and hid it in a napkin.” She leaned forward and dropped her voice like she was giving him the secret to the universe, “Then he let Koro cook in HIS kitchen.”

Cmdr. Mal’athar, XO

Cochrane’s was sparkled with hidden knowledge. “Oh yeah? Well, as long as I’ve known him he’s had a soft spot for kids.” He took a drink and smiled over the rim of his glass. “And I guess since you were watching him.... Harv let you in his kitchen too, huh?” and he grinned at her.

Cochrane, CO

Shedda rolled her eyes. “Get that smirk off your face. Yes, but only because Koro was too scared to go alone. I stood in the corner out of the way the whole time.” Shedda did NOT mention that wasn’t the first time she’d been in Harv’s kitchen (with permission) nor did she remark on how Harv drenched her with the sprayer.

Cmdr. Mal’athar, XO