Officer's Night [Esteem crew]

[kyliegrasan]

All was well on the Alliance base on Londinium. Thanks to captain Pike, the Esteem crew had gotten their long overdue shoreleave. Kylie had spent the last couple of days sightseeing in the capitol city of Londinium, and having late and sometimes drunken nights with some of her shipmates. She also managed to get a wave out to her father. It had been a long time since she had been able to, and it was good to hear from the homefront.

She was well-rested and her wounds were well healed. The ointment that reduced bruises dr. Tamar had prescribed her really did the trick. To her own relief, the pain on her belly and her tighs was reduced now to just a uncomfortable feeling if she moved in certain positions.

Kylie was now getting prepared for a fancy evening with the officers: candlelight dinner followed by brandy and cigars. With her was her good friend and chief engineer of the Esteem Barney Callahan, who was discussing the possible next assignments for the Esteem with her.

"I'm just sayin' Kyles, I hope they'll let us take it easy for now." Barney said. "Gonna be a lot of new faces aboard, not to mention a whole lot of new hardware to get used to."

"Heh, right Barn." Kylie said as she buttoned her uniform up in front of the mirror in her locker. "Our new XO is a special task operative, and they gave me and others that special training for a reason. No, they've got something in store for us. Count on that."

"Still think you shoulda got the promotion and become the new XO, or even the new captain." Barney said. "But no, they'd rather hang you out to dry and for what? Because the gorram Companion Guild wants to see someone get punished for one of their whores buyin' the farm?"

Kylie buttoned the last button on her uniform, took out her brush and started combing her hair. Her hair had gotten long, and she debated on whether or not to leave it like that or have it cut back to like it was.

"Me? A captain?" Kylie laughed. "You know, it was hard enough being in charge of a hundred, and I don't even want to know what it's like to be in charge of five times more. Commanding a small squad is one thing, but five hundred? No, I'd rather leave that to experienced people. I'm here to do my service time just like you Barn. Nothing more. And don't worry about them hanging me out to dry. Given the fact they gave me that special training I don't think they're planning on demoting me. And so what if I'm denied a medal or two? Heck, if I'm lucky they'll discharge me. But that would probably be too much to ask for..."

"Well I hope they don't discharge you." Barney answered. "Ship would be a lot emptier without you. And I still need to get revenge on you for every time you take my money during poker!"

Kylie stopped brushing her hair and tied it into a ponytail. She then put on her bonnet and moved it until it was in the right position.

"Like I said, don't worry about it." Kylie said. "I just hope we get moving soon, I've seen enough of this base."

"Ai ya, that reminds me!" Barney said as he took out an unlabeled bottle out of the bag he took with him. "Here's a bottle of my own brewed vodka. Give this to captain Pike with my compliments will you? Maybe if he's had a few shots of these he might spill the beans on our next assignment."

"Tss! Forget it Barn, I'm not liquoring the captain up for you!" Kylie said. "Besides, your vodka needs getting used to, I'm not going to risk the captain coughing out his intestines!"

"Oh, don't overreact!" Barney answered. "And admit it, you're just as curious as me when it comes to our next assignment. I've heard a few rumors like they're shippin' us to Bernadette to stop the slavers, and that there's preparations being made to fight the militia on Jiangyin! Hell, I even heard someone say that they're gonna have us guard a wedding before we embark!"

And the mention of Bernadette, Kylie paused for a minute and just stared at herself in the mirror. It was the world where her mother disappeared after she was sent there along with a task force. Kylie had searched Alliance archives about it but maybe if they would go to Bernadette, she could find out more.

She blinked her eyes, and then looked at Barney. Although it probably wouldn't be necessary to get captain Pike drunk, it would be interesting to know what their next assignment would be.

"Oh okay!" Kylie said. "Give me the bottle. I'll give it to him with your compliments, so if he coughs out his liver that'll be on your head!"

Barney playfully smiled at Kylie, the smile he got whenever he was up to no good, and handed the bottle over to her. Kylie herself then straightened out her uniform, it was time to go and the last thing she wanted was to be late.

"Alright, I'm good to go." Kylie said. "Dismissed chief!"

"Yes ma'am!" Barney said and then was off. Kylie herself went out as well, locking the door behind her.

She walked the halls of the officer's quarter of the base with Barney's bottle of vodka in hand until she got to the officers' lounge, where captain Pike's soirée was going to take place. Under normal circumstances, the officers' lounge was open to all officers, and it didn't require knocking to get in. However, given the current situation Kylie figured it would be prudent to knock.

She knocked two times and then waited patiently, but in a way eagerly as well for someone to come open the door.

[OOC: Sorry about the epic long post, but I'm pretty inspired for a Sunday evening. For those of you who want more info on Kylie's friend Barney, he's up for adoption and his profile is here: watchasisoar.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=adoptions&action=display&thread=283]

[amaia]

Amaia stared at the bottle of whiskey in front of her. The stuff was good - it set her back probably as much as the average soldier on the ship made in a month - but it was well worth it. It was a warm drink, with plenty of flavor and a kick that kept you awake. She poured a second shot of the stuff and stared at it. It was the kind of alcohol that challenged you. It was almost a living, breathing thing. If you didn't respect it, it'd try to kill you.

A couple of proper knocks at the door interrupted her reverie. She looked up at the door, back down at the whiskey. Amaia sighed, a bit sad that her ritual with this shot couldn't be completed. She grabbed the glass, knocked back the drink, and slammed the glass on the table with a loud "thwack" before hopping to her feet and going to the door.

"One minute, one minute," she called out to soothe any impatience of the person behind the door. She hit the keypad near the door, and it slid open silently, revealing Lieutenant Grasan.

"Ah, Grasan, good. I was starting to get lonely, and as they say - when you drink alone, that's when you have a problem." She smirked and gestured for the officer to come in as she went back to her table.

"Good to see the doctors on the ship are worth their weight," Amaia continued, filling the room with idle chit-chat. "Doesn't look like you got run over by a freighter anymore." She smirked at Grasan, indicating there was no real cruelty or meanness intended. She poured two shots - albeit smaller this time around - and slid the glass across the table to the Lieutenant. Amaia picked up her glass, raised it tall, and offered the toast, "Here's to that failure of a Colonel ending up uglier than he started - surprising that's even possible, isn't it?"

[kyliegrasan]

The door got opened and in it stood Amaia. A look beyond her revealed that the captain wasn't there yet, so Kylie could rest easy: she wasn't late or anything.

She let Amaia do the talking as she was guided inside. It seemed like Amaia had gotten a headstart. She also made a comment about the doctors shifting their weight on the ship, and that she didn't look so horrible anymore. Kylie could only carefully laugh with it. It wasn't so funny from her side. Spending nights awake because the pain was just too much to bare.

But she didn't let it bother her, and when Amaia shoved down a shot of whiskey to her, Kylie took it in her hand.
Amaia wanted to toast to colonel Hogan, but that was something Kylie was going to object to. No way in hell was she going to toast to that man.

"You'll have to forgive me if I don't toast to the colonel's health." Kylie answered. "It's guys like him who make the Uprising seem like a good idea. So here's to him guarding the ass end of nowhere in the coldest corner of St. Albans."

Kylie gulped down the shot of whiskey, leaving the whiskey roam around her mouth for a second, and then swallowing it. She knew that whiskey wasn't something to swallow directly, as that would most likely result in a burning throat and coughing. Although she had been drinking Barney's vodka for quite some time now, and if you were able to swallow that stuff without cringing, you could drink almost anything with no problem.

Kylie got an idea. Rather than to present Barney's vodka to the captain and risk him not liking it, she decided to give Amaia a taste first. She put down the bottle on the table so Amaia could see it.

"When you're done with your whiskey, you should try this." Kylie said. "It's Chief Callahan's own brew vodka. He doesn't tell the recipe to anyone but we're pretty convinced there's kerosine in there somewhere."

The last part Kylie said was a joke, at least she hoped so. Barney was well able to put kerosine in there, but she sincerely hoped he didn't. Especially considering she had been drinking the stuff ever she was assigned to the Esteem.

[merrit]

Erik sat on his bed in his quarters aboard the ship he would be calling home for awhile. He felt like a traitor, he felt dirty. Then he thought of the money he was making for doing it, which brought a smile to his face. He was going to be well compensated for working with the Alliance.

He stood up and made sure he looked all right in the mirror. He outfit was clean and neat. He trimmed up his beard and showered. He looked like a gentleman, which he hadn't looked like for sometime. He grabbed his brown duster off the end of the bed and put it on. It was his way of giving the middle finger to the alliance as he flew their ship. It was his way of stating they are just paying for his services, they didn't have him.

Walking over to the cabnets Erik opened the doors and withdrew a bottle of whiskey from a crate he had on the floor. One of four mind you. The stuff wasn't for the refined tongue. He had heard some have used it to strip the varnish off a table or eat away the oil built up on a catalizer. Yes the stuff was harsh, but it was cheap and it got the job done. Not to mention he didn't have to worry about people trying to steal it. Also it was one of the more common drinks you'd find on the border worlds.

He left his cabin with bottle in hand and went to the officers lounge. Not even bothering to knock he let himself in and was greeted by the sight of the assassin and the young officer who was looking less battered and broken.

Noticing the shot glasses on the table and the two bottles present he smiled at least he was in good company for the moment. If he was in a local bar alcohol usually leads to problems, but proper folk don't fight when they drink... well at least not the same way. You'd be more worried about a furious debate or getting thrown out for an uncivil tongue than getting hit over the head with a chair. It wasn't proper, and the core people loved being proper or at least a resemblence of proper.

"Good evening ladies. I see that you have all ready begun to enjoy yourselves. Ms. Sang, I believe? "

He gave a small bow to the killer, but their was a stiffness to the bow. He still didn't feel very comfortable around her, even if he was technically "on their side".

"And Ms. Grasan, you're looking much better. I hope that you weren't too much pain."

He also gave her a bow and a big smile. He wasn't so worried about her, while the girl obviously could withstand a lot. She wasn't a killer. Well at least one that killed without a reason.

Erik took a seat right next to Kylie and set down his bottle. He caught a whiff of the vodka that Kylie had and it burned the nose a little.

"Wow. That smells like it has some kerosene in it."

[kyliegrasan]

Just as Kylie offered Amaia a drink of Barney's vodka, the Browncoat mercenary entered the room. Kylie couldn't help but wonder whether or not he was lost. He wasn't an officer, and according to Alliance regulations the lowest rank of soldier would still outrank him.

But she wasn't the kind of person to look down on people, nor was she going to ask him whether or not he was lost. She was the kind of girl to give people a chance no matter who they were. Besides, she wasn't in the war he fought in, nor did she exactly share all of the Alliance's ideals. In fact, she opposed more of them than she embraced, but being a lieutenant in the Navy was just a job to her. A job as simple as a baker or a convenience store clerk. Even though the last couple of weeks had been difficult.

As he wished both Amaia and Kylie a good evening, Kylie gave him a friendly nod as well. He scored even more points when he remarked that she looked better than before.

He sat down next to Kylie and took a whiff on the bottle. He also seemed to recognize the scent of kerosene in it, and this got Kylie a tad worried, because a pilot would of course know what kerosene smelled like.

"Thank you, mr. Saints." Kylie responded. "That's kind of you to say. And I sure hope you're wrong about the vodka. Feel free to have a taste. Word of advice though: don't let it touch your tongue."

[amaia]

Amaia took the bottle of homemade vodka and poured a small amount into a glass, taking a sniff of it. It indeed smelled of some cocktail of chemicals that would undoubtedly eat away her stomach at best. She downed the splash of the liquid, taking care to heed Grasan's advice of avoiding the tongue, but even with that advice, the liquor still kicked hard, more than any home-made moonshine in recent memory.

"Te ma de," Amaia growled, but laughed a moment later. "Should tell the Chief to not let that stuff spill, I think it'd eat a hole in the ship."

Amaia looked about at the staff around her. It was, without a doubt, the most motley of crews, but somehow she had some faith it would work. Grasan was one of the good ones, a soldier who honestly believed in doing good and helping people. Saints, although on the wrong side of the war, was one of those Browncoats whose loyalty could be encouraged with a generous payroll, and with the Alliance, the budget allowed for such generosity. And to top it off, Amaia herself provided the more questionable muscle for those times when things got...weird. Hard as it was to believe, the crew makeup was synergistic.

Amaia poured a small shot of the vodka before producing a lighter and lighting the top. "Not for the weak, and not for the clumsy, but I think this is how this stuff is supposed to be enjoyed." Amaia held up the burning glass and smiled. "To the Esteem, yeah?"

[kyliegrasan]

The evening seemed like it was coming together nicely for Kylie and the rest. The only one that had to show up now was the captain, but Kylie had a feeling the captain was one of those people that would always be stylefully late. But that was something she could forgive in someone as charismatic and as handsome as captain Pike.

After Amaia poured a drink, Kylie helped herself to some of Barney's vodka as well. It seemed as if Amaia enjoyed the drink, and that came to no surprise to Kylie: Amaia was tough enough to drink actual kerosine.

When Amaia toasted to the Esteem, Kylie couldn't help herself to make an addition to it.

"To the Esteem, and to many adventures on the Border as well!" She added.

She then gulped down the vodka in the way she was used to, and by not letting her touch her tongue. Her throat and stomach had become acustome to the heat it left which was no surprise, she had been drinking the stuff for almost a year after all.

But Kylie figured she was on the right track to ask about their next assignment. And Amaia, as the new XO was sure to know something, and maybe she was willing to share.

"So speaking of adventures..." Kylie continued. "Do you know anything about our next assignment Amaia?"