Posted by Ensign Elemirre Serinde (Engineering Officer) in A small ship

Posted by Crewman Eldorin Asam (Engineering Officer) in A small ship

Posted by Ensign Elemirre Serinde (Engineering Officer) in A small ship
Posted by… suppressed (8) by the Post Ghost! 👻
snip
“That’d be grand if you’d be so kind. I appreciate the introductions and the lay of the land, like. It’s good to know who I might be workin’ closely with. As for the bunk? Incense isn’t a problem. Me wife used to get this stuff from a shop back… Ach, you don’t need the story of me home life. It won’t be a bother.” Eldorin said, catching himself about to reminisce over a shop he and Rende used to frequent a century before any of his fellow shipmates were born. “I’m happy enough to drop off me bags and get stuck in, if you’ll have me. Every ship has its own personality, like, and I’d like to learn her wee quirks.”

–Eldorin, Engineering–

“One moment,” Bekele said and moved the short distance across the room to the door to the Machine Shop. Eldorin could see Galen hefting one of the crates up onto a shelf. “Ensign,” Bekele said. A moment later a short, trim Asian woman appeared in the doorway. Her features were inquisitive. She was wiping her hands on a white and red rag at her waist. “New crewman is boarding,” he began, pointing to Eldorin. “I’ll show him to his quarters, with Will.”
El peered around Bekele at Eldorin and raised a brow and lifted a hand in greeting. “Will? Hope he likes quiet,” she commented.
“Who knows, it might get him out of his shell, but we don’t have much else.”
She nodded. “No telling how many we’ll get aboard on this mission. Any idea of what it is?”
“Not much. Gossip is it is searching for lost freighters but nothing more.”
“Freighters,” she said with a soft frown.
“Not likely slavers like the last time,” he commented.
“Yeah,” she said. Her voice had a distinct Chinese accent but her English was very good. “Get him settled. I guess we’ll have to work at figuring out who’s speaking to whom when someone calls out El.” Smiling she went back into the shop.

“Right, let’s go,” Bekele said. As they went along, he said, “My village. Well, town. Everyone calls them villages where I’m from, uses incense and such with festivals. It can be heady stuff. Where do you hail from?”
- Bekele et al, Eng

Eldorin listened intently to get as much information as he could from the crew, it was always exciting to have a new adventure and new folks to experience it with. He gleaned things about his new cabin mate, the past missions, and the general attitude of those he’d be serving with. Bekele explained a little of his heritage and Eldorin was curious about more, “Oh, I hail from just outside Belfast, in Northern Ireland, like…” He said before trailing off, remembering that it hadn’t been ‘Northern Ireland’ since reunification in 2024, and he quickly followed up with “So, tell me, what kind of festivals are you talkin’ about for your village, like? I could talk about Belfast all day long, but there’ll be time for that later I ‘spose”

–Eldorin, Engineering–

“Been there once on shore leave,” Bekele replied. “Don’t know if Belfast is in the North or not. I just remember the green beer they drink to commemorate one of their saints. Strange ways to do that. Went with a few from the Peggie, a Turkish build, called the Pergamum after one of their ancient cities. Peggie was always easier to say especially after green beer.”

“Aye, Belfast is up North, right enough. And you’re thinkin’ of St. Patrick’s Day, it has a long list of traditions, as ye say.” Eldorin said in reply, thinking happily back to the many, many St. Paddy’s days he had partook in one too many and regretted it the following morning.

“It can be incredible how long traditions carry on and which have long outlived their use,” he commented.

They followed the corridor along the same deck. “A principle festival is called the k’idime āyatochi, honoring our ancestors. It isn’t quite the ceremony that those of centuries past had. Progress changes things as does population. But still have the stories, the dances, the celebrations and yes the incense. But here we are.” He stopped and hit the door buzzer. A click indicated the door lock releasing and small green light appearing. Bekele pushed on it and it swung open. A faint twinge of a foreign smell was present. “Hey Will. New engineer”
There was the sound of someone shifting and then legs dropping from the top bunk. An older man (though Bekele was older, but old for a seaman rank) perhaps in his 30’s with thinning blond hair, an angular face and pronounced adams apple faced them. He had a beaded, colorful headband on and rose colored glasses. “Will, this here is Eldorin. Eldorin, William Fry.”
After a pause that had Will looking Eldorin over he stepped forward and reached out his hand. “Just Will. Not Bill and if you say William I will have nightmares of my mother calling me that and chasing me around with my report card from school.” The tone was somewhat more deadpan and hard to tell if he was serious or being funny.
- Will and Bekele

Eldorin shook the man’s hand with a smile, he was indeed hard to read but Eldorin didn’t think to read too much into first impressions. He was a good listener after all and would get to know Will soon enough. “Eldorin Asam. Pleasure to meet ye, Will. I don’t take up much space, like. I’d ask ye to verify that with the wife, but she’s back on Earth, so you’ll have to take me word for it. Mind if I just drop my bag?”

~Eldorin Asam, Engineering Officer~

Will stepped back. He was in uniform but barefoot and a little shorter than Eldorin. Gesturing to the left, in the opposite space between the wall and where the bunk beds began there were two lockers. “Hey, all cool. Right one is empty,” he said. “Married, eh? Is that one of the for better or for worse kinds?” When Eldorin would peer around the corner to the back area of the cabin he would see a surf board hung up across the wall area of his bunk. “What’s the accent, man? You sound a bit like Fiona, but different.”

Bekele stepped back. “I’ll let you get settled. You can report to the chief or Lt Green depending on who is about. You’ve done all your checks and are cleared by medical?”
- Will and Bekele

Eldorin shifted a little as his eyes followed to where Will was pointing, “Right one it is, then, and thanks. Oh, the ring? Aye, myself and the wife have been together a good while now, it seems. She’s at MACO boot camp back on Earth.” He replied with a slight chuckle before putting his bag away and sitting on what was oh so recently an unoccupied bunk, “The accent? I’m from Belfast, like, the northern part of Ireland.”

Will gave a short “Hmmmm. Boot camp.” He chewed his lip and nodded slowly looking Eldorin over. “Fiona’s from a small town, she says, ‘of sheep and stone’. You sure you’re Irish? You sound it but .. just don’t seem to have the fight in your voice.” He shrugged and retreated to give Eldorin more room to stuff the gear.

He turned his head to Bekele and smiled up at the man warmly, “Thanks for showin’ me around here. I’ll pop into the Chief’s office in a wee while. And aye, medical’s cleared me to go to work.”

~Eldorin Asam, Engineering Officer~

“That’s good. Doctor can sometimes keep one around longer in chatting. You’d think he was lonely or something. I’ll see you both later. And Galley is on B deck when you’re looking for grub.” With that Bekele was gone.
-Will and Bekele, Eng

“Aye he can. And thanks fer tha tip!” Eldorin replied, having not actually met the doctor given his unique circumstances. He settled in calmly as he looked over at Will, seeing the man and gone back to whatever he was doing before returning to settle himself in. It would be an interesting time without Rende, not their first, but always different.

~Eldorin Asam, Engineering Officer~

What might be curious is that Will isn’t young, appearing to Eldorin somewhere in his 30’s and still a seaman. It might be his more chiseled look that made him look even older. He moves about in the small cabin with a relaxed gait. In fact in the first while that Eldorin might be watching Will, it seemed he was one of few words and feeling no particular need for urgency. In anything. Methodical yes. Urgent no. Here and there he flicks curious looks at Eldorin before finally asking, “How long have you been married?”
- Will, Eng seaman

Eldorin relaxed a little against the bulkhead as he looked at the man, watching carefully as he moved around the room slowly “Aye it feels we’ve been married for 200 ‘ears, like, and this isn’t the first time we’ve been apart. But it’s always different twould seem? Do you have anyone back ‘ome yerself?” Eldorin asked as he wasn’t in a position to say it was closer to 245 but he chuckled and would have to tell Rende about it in their next letter.

~Eldorin Asam, Engineering Officer~

Will whistled. “Hey, sorry to hear that man. That sounds rough,” he said, evidently getting the phrase wrong in understanding.

A shadow briefly passed his features at Eldorin’s question. He shook his head. “Just family. Some poker friends.” He tapped the surfboard. “Belle here.” There was a tone of fatalism as an undercurrent that Eldorin might pick up on but others would likely miss. “Brought Belle along thinking I’d be able to surf on all these worlds we get to.” Again that undercurrent. Eldorin would note that there were various stickers on the board that up close would note different beaches on Earth.
- Will Eng Seaman

Eldorin chuckled a little, his perspective was far longer than any of these Humans or even Vulcans would understand, yet they were charming in a way, so many things across species were relatable: hobbies, family, friends, all a great unifier between them. He nodded and said, “It’s alright, the wife and me are plenty happy, we take these little times ta get ta know our sel’s better.” He said leaving it intentionally vague, “Tell me, where do ya like ta surf? Never something I picked up in my time…” He said stopping himself from going further in his description of time.

~Eldorin Asam, Engineering Officer~

A little twitch on Will’s cheek was telling, or perhaps not. “Live in SanFran,” he said, thinking of his small place, well bigger than this but still small, on the outskirts of the sprawling city not far off the beach. He called it the ‘shack’ because that was essentially what it was. “So mostly the bay. Fort Point. Pacifica. Sometimes got down to Santa Cruz.” He pointed to some of the other stickers. “Picked these up on vacations.” He tapped one. “Costa de Prata. Silver Coast in Portugal. Wild waves there. Went there over Christmas.” He leaned against the bunk. “My dad taught me how to surf at the Fran Bay. It’s like a drug man, when you let it get into your soul, like you’re a god walking on the water and the problems of life just drown under you. You know that feeling?”
- Will, Eng

“Aye” Eldorin said with a gentle nod, “Fer me t’was always mechanical, whether be antiques or so. I built me fair share o’ antique engines, gettin’ lost in tha parts, findin’ how they all work tagether like.” Eldorin replied as he had always been involved on the maintenance side of things, working with the El-Aurian resistance groupes or taking a job as a mechanic fixing trucks on Earth before any of these fine folks’ great granparents were alive. “I like tae fix things no doubt, but tinkerin’? That’s where me heart really is. Gettin’ the most outa what you put in tae somethin’ like.”

~Eldorin Asam, Engineering Officer~

Will’s eyes went distant as he stared at the grey bulkhead across from him. “It’s like they call to you,” he said in a soft voice, not really directed at Eldorin. “The pieces are there and you can see them and you want to take it apart and find the wonder in it and then you see the patterns and what can be done with it and you put it back together and it’s like you created life.” He shook himself out of his reverie. “Antique engines. Where did you ever get the parts?”
- Will, Eng

OOC: Bump .. Gene