Dinner Date with Two Old Cats

Posted on Wed Oct 30th, 2024 @ 11:41pm by Captain Mira Rodale & Commander Kevin Lance
Edited on on Thu Oct 31st, 2024 @ 5:22am

Mission: Starbase 364
Location: Starbase 364
Timeline: One Week after The Way to Home

on:
{SB364, Personal quarters.}

Zimia smiled as she watched Mira put her hair up. It was soft and beautiful curls. She looked amazing.

"There are 3 women on the ship asking for transfers. Luckily, we don't have to deal with Ensign Bryne. "Zimia said, fishing for more information.

Mira nodded as she added light makeup. "I already talked to Nim. Told her they all had their transfers. I didn’t want to know their reasons.”

"You did? What did she say." Zimia asked

Mira rolled her eyes. "Not having that conversation again, Zimia but I told her 'she was just as much to blame for her actions as Kevin, and since she remembered and he didn't, then it wasn't his problem but hers', " then Mira sighed "I also added that she betrayed me to because she knew what she was doing. The problem is all that crap happened in a dream state so." She shrugged. Of course when they got to the base Kevin was all to happy to take the quarters next door then to sleep in a queen size bed with her or having the kids in the next room since she was given a two bedroom quarters.

At least she did have a large bathroom and living room with fireplace even if it was fake. It did work and It still looked good. Her belongings had been taken out of storage, so this was the 2nd time she had to open the chest they packed a dead crewmembers belongings in. It's a really odd feeling to everyone give up on you being alive.

"Zimia, I have an appointment with Doc Skalvunn early in the morning “ The Vulcan doctor was going to help her go through her memories. It was a huge undertaking but she needed the help.

Zimia nodded “Does Kevin know?” Mira shook her head “When I tried to asking him about his plans for tomorrow he said he would be on the ship. So I left it. Montgomery will add me home if it’s bad.”

She step back looking at herself in the mirror. She looked really good. Her hips had more curves to them then before the baby not to much but it looked good on her and she had to up a size on her top. So her jacket was more fitted then normal.

She turned around “all these toys are not staying. It looks like a toy store threw up in here. IF they can’t fit in the toy box in your room they are not staying. So pick carefully what you want Kolar.”

He gave her a nod.

Mira looked to Zimia “Bad auntie Zimia. How on earth did you manage to make this much of a mess while I was in the shower?”

“Talent.” Zimia grinned.

{Kevin’s quarters, SB364}

Kevin finished pulling on his boots and examined himself in the mirror. It had taken more than a week to get the ragtag collection of ships back to Starbase 364 after destroying the alien facility that had held them capture for the better part of a year. It had taken every inch of Mira’s diplomatic skills to keep the Klingons and other alien races in line and out of conflict with each other but she had deftly managed the ongoing task with great aplomb. Like she was happy to get back to being herself.

He still didn’t remember anything about the ten months that they had been captive and though he suspected that she remember more, Mira seemed to be holding back sharing only information about Ashla’s birth and their time together in an ancient Norse village named Faereyjar. It sounded like an idyllic time not without its trials but on the whole she expressed a general happiness over the experience.

She had mentioned that Midshipman Tanner, the Academy cadet from the USS Fauci that they had rescued, had been very helpful to Kevin at one point in the simulated captivity. He had been happy to hear that. Miss Tanner had shown great potential in the week that she had served as Flight Control Officer after Ensign Bryne had been lost in the destruction of the alien station. Kevin had sent a glowing fitness report as the young woman returned to Earth.

Satisfied that his dress uniform was up to his own high standards, Kevin departed his temporary quarters to cross the hall to Mira’s. He rang the door chime and entered when he was bidden. The room was a disarray of toys. Zimia, it would appear, had decided to make up for lost time when the shipboard replicators were limited to only foodstuffs and mission critical items. The Yeoman was sitting on a coach holding Ashla as Kolar played with the toys on the floor. Kevin looked at his son in frank astonishment. He had changed, matured in the intervening time to the point that it was hard to recognize the baby he had once been. Kevin was fairly certain that this wasn’t quite what parents meant when they would say “they grow up so fast” but there was no denying that Kevin felt that he was missing out on so much.

Mira entered from the adjoining bedroom. She too was suited up in full dress uniform, regulation length. The miniskirted verisons that Ambassador M’Niras had special made for their diplomatic mission had been the first items designated for reclamation once the replicators were back on line. Although Kevin greatly appreciated Mira’s legs, this was much more fitting her position and dignity as a Star Fleet Captain.

Mira kissed Kolar’s cheek “I'll be back right after dinner but you need to be in bed by the time I do.”

“Mama was dada bad is that way he doesn’t live with us?” he asked with a little pout.

Mira wince but put a smile on her face “Your father wanted his own space Hon. Now be good for me. Ok?” she touched his nose with her finger.

He nodded “Can we go on safari tomorrow in the …holodeck?"

Mira nodded “Right after my appointment with Skalvunn I’ll come back and we will take a nap. then go to the holodeck.”

“Yea!” Kolar exclaimed “Mama don’t eat to much stuffy at dinner.”

Mira grinned “I won’t sweet heart. Take care of your sister.” She had told him she was going to a stuffy dinner now he thought she was eating stuffy. Kids she thought.

Turning to Kevin she smiled “ready?"

"No," he admitted, "but we really don't have a choice, do we." He bent over to kiss Ashla on the forehead then picked up Kolar in a great, noisy bear hug. Kolar squealed in delight.

After he and Mira departed, Kevin said, "I tried to explain to Kolar why we aren't sharing the same bed."

"Maybe you can explain it to me," Mira replied a little huffily.

I deserved that, Kevin thought. They were quiet as a few crewmembers greeted them in the hallway. Once aboard the turbolift, he said, "I read the compiled reports from the crewmembers that retained memories from captivity. Sounds like my behavior was abominable. I don't doubt that you might question my worth as a mate, my loyalty."

She held her hand up, "If I questioned your worth, I would tell you right out to your face. I was upfront with you about problems I would be having with my symbiont and the things I went through without you. So you chose your own space. That's on you. Don't try to make it about doing me a favor. " Mira looked up to see Crus not hearing the door slid open. She cursed. Of course, when Kevin and her had this conversation, her Guardian's aid would have to witness it.

He chuckled at her curse and then held his hand out as if to shake her hand in greeting. She went to shake his hand mostly out of habit, then anything else.

Crus took it and kissed it. He was grinning at her now because she was trying to pull it away from him and couldn't. Kevin frowned.

Mira narrowed her eyes. "Let my hand go you fur ball or ill kick you."

He laughed, "Ever the lady." He let go.

Mira wiped her hand on her shirt, "Ever the ass."

She kept walking, knowing the location they were to have dinner was right around the corner.

Crus laughed and followed her with Kevin by his side.

"You are always so independent and feisty." Crus laughed.

"When I find a man that is dependable, I will not need to do everything myself." She had spent a few lifetimes not needing to.... Mira shook her head and opened the door herself. Men could be so unreasonable.

Kevin felt the sting of the indirect rebuke. When she found a man that was dependable. He had failed her in that regard.

Walking in Mira was relieved to see Montgomery talking to Proll and M’Niras.

"Ah, Mira, my dear. You look amazing." M’Niras kissed her cheek." Mira, I would like to introduce you to the freighter Captain John Cravis he and his ship were rescued by the Norris."

Mira’s eye narrowed, she remembered him well from Faereyjar and the mining facility. "We have met a few times."

Cravis nodded. "We have." His smile was cold until he saw Kevin, then his eyes widened before they narrowed. Kevin gave no spark of recognition.

Mira frowned, so it wasn't all humans that lost their memories.

"Uncle, I am starving." Mira told him, trying to change the subject.

"Well, when the lady wants to eat, we had better see to it she can eat." Proll laughed

Following M’Niras to the table, Montgomery ran interference for Mira in preventing Cravis from sitting next to her. She took her seat, letting M’Niras push her chair in.

Once everyone was seated, there was one chair empty across from hers. Mira took the cloth napkin and placed it on her lap

"Captain Bob Rashard is running a little late. Some problems on his ship. He is the captain of the USS Gato. You might know him as well he was held prisoner as with you." Proll told them.

That was really the last thing she wanted to know right now. Great all of them were in the Matrix as if she wasn't under enough pressure. What was this feed the captives night?

Mira had just picked up her knife to cut her food when her nightmare from the desert entered. Mira's hand tightened on the knife and began to shake.

"Mira, Mira.... She looks very pale. Mira, can you hear me?" M’Niras reached over to take the knife from her hand, but she had a death grip on it.

Rashard sat as if nothing was wrong and smirked. "I had wondered if that was you, my little desert rose."

Mira just lightly trembled as images flooded her. Blood, death, torture.

M’Niras frowned. "What did you do to her?"

Rashard put his hand to his chest. "I was in a cryopod asleep. I did nothing to her. Wasn't it decided that none of us are to blame for what we were put through in the Matrix?" Rashard smiled.

Montgomery cleared his throat as he put his napkin down "Perhaps I should take her to the Vulcan ship now. Skalvunn will see her earlier, I think."

"Why are you going to see Skalvunn?" Kevin asked Mira. It was the second time that he had heard the name.

Mira cursed inwardly as she got more control over the images. She hadn't wanted Kevin to know be cause he had made it known he wasn't with her right now. With feigned indifference, she said, "Just a minor issue stemming from the surgery on my back." She lied.

Kevin eyes narrowed suspiciously. She hadn't mentioned it to him and if it truly were a minor issue, why wasn't Doctor K'ner attending to her?

"I am certain that there is no need for that," Proll objected, "not with dinner about to begin. I want everyone on their best behavior." He gave a pointed look at Rashard who shrugged indifferently.

The first course was served. Mira's favorite blue leaf salad. Kevin picked up his fork as his eyes darted back and forth between Cravis and Rashard. He had no memory of either but something in the back of his mind suggested that Captain Rashard was not to be trusted.

"I noticed several transfers off of the Chuck Norris upon your return," Proll said idly.

Montgomery interjected before Mira could, "Yes, Admiral. Seems that some of the experiences in captivity were too intense for some of our crew. Reassignment was deemed in the best interests of all concerned."

"What were your experiences?" the Admiral queried.

"Rather dull, I am afraid," Montgomery deferred, "I remember being a worker in a mine, piloting a land ground vehicle and serving on a British man-o-war but nothing particularly noteworthy. I suppose that the aliens found me rather dull."

"It is a pity that the alien base needed to be destroyed," M'Niras stated regretfully, "I suppose that we will never discover who they were or why they were doing what they were."

"That was the Klingons' doing," Kevin interjected. He felt the loss of the six crewmembers from the Norris and had been on the verge of recommending a rescue mission when the Klingons had come about with all guns blazing.

"Ah, yes," M'Niras acknowledged with a mock salute of his wine glass, "Our stalwart allies. Your disappearance caused a major shift in the political climate of the Empire. So many pretenders and regents vying for the inheritance of House Rasmehlier. Thall, your major-domo designate, has done a good job of holding things together but Intelligence suggests that the edges are fraying." The Ambassador looked directly at Mira, "It might require your direct intervention."

Mira raised an eyebrow at M'Niras. "I am already dealing with it.....Uncle. Lucky for me, I got to spend most of the last 10 months fine turning my fighting skills. I am ready to kill whoever challenges me or becomes a threat." Her voice was full of coldness as her eyes met Rashard. Of course, when she was having to deal with him before, he was called Rasha.

Rashard gave her a little nod. "Your skills were very impressive for someone your size on Desnara. It was a shame you had to be disciplined so often."

Mira stiffened "To bad it was ordered so often by the ass in charge. He really was full of himself. His ignorance of how he thought himself important was laughable."

M'Niras looked between the two then asked "Mira what was Desnara like?"

"Desert. Extremely hot. The inhabitants lived underground for the most part to get away from the heat of the sun. There were five warlords in command of five colonies. Training was brutal and bloody. If you failed in training you were violently punished to encourage you not to fail next time. Luckily I was killed." She gave a small smile to M'Niras. Before leaning back to let the server take her plate.

"Was Commander Lance with you during this part of the simulation?" M'Niras asked.

"No," she admitted, "He was an offworlder, a Duke or some sort of noble with suzerainty over the planet and a requirement to harvest a rare resource." Kevin recalled reading this in the consolidated report. He and Mira had been separated for most of that portion of the simulation, only meeting a few minutes before the reset.

"That would explain why he didn't save you," Proll observed.

"Actually," Mira confessed, "Commander Lance was the one who killed me that time."

Proll and M'Niras' eyes were immediately on Kevin and Crus gave a combination smile and snarl. Montgomery looked down at his plate while Rashard whispered, "Awkward."

"I was killed many times myself," Captain Cravis interjected, "but the worst experience was when Commander Lance skinned me alive."

Kevin gave a start. That wasn't in the consolidated report. He didn't remember doing it but the method for doing so involving extremely sharp knifes immediately sprung to mind. "When was that," he asked.

"Don't remember when," Cravis stared Kevin down, "but it was outside of the village of Faereyjar."

"You had kidnapped the Captain and several of the crew with the intent of selling them into slavery," Kevin recalled from the report, "Punishment was justified."

"Perhaps so," Cravis countered, "but the method was so cruel and without mercy." He looked to Mira, "I would watch out for that one."

Kevin tortured Cravis to death, Mira realized. She hadn't known that.

Mira gave a tight smile. " He got to you before I could. " she gave a little shrug. "What you did, you deserved death in laws of viking culture. As to Kevin actually killing me. I had recognized him while we fought and would no longer fight. It was actually a woman who stabbed me from behind that finally ended me."

Rashard nodded. "I did warn you to watch your back."

Proll was looking at everyone in horror. "Mira, how many times did you die in this matrix?"

Mira shrugged. "Something like 15 times or more. I haven't gone through all the memories stored by my symbiont. I'll get to it soon since my doctor has put me on light duty until I recover. There was a lot of damage to my ship. Commander Lance and Lt. Commander Montgomery are more then capable of overseeing the repairs while I deal with the Klingons and recover."

The empty potato soup bowl was taken away and larger steak with potatoes was put in front over her. She cut it open and smiled. It was medium rare "You picked the whole meal with me in mind?" she asked curiously.

M'Niras nodded but he did enjoy that she had noticed and was pleased.

"Do you intend to travel to Qo'nos while the Chuck Norris is sent back for refit?" Proll asked. Kevin was wondering this as well. Although Mira had said that she didn't hold what happened in the simulated captivity against him, she hadn't been very encouraging of him either. He didn't know if giving her space was the right course of action or not. Perhaps the call to duty would decide the matter for them.

Mira shook her head no. "I am not, So the challenge will take place here or on the Planet below." She gave a little shrug "it had been accept the challenge or the wedding proposal of joining the two houses. I told him I hoped he had an heir picked out because he was a Deadman walking right now." She shrugged "I have seen his fighting skills but lucky for me no one knows the skills I have picked up." She put a piece of steak in her mouth. Or how ticked off she was to be right back in the middle of all this BS along with having to look out for the Orions.

"You haven't touched your steak, Commander," M'Niras observed, "Is it not to your liking?"

"It is fine," Kevin replied blandly, "I just seem to have lost my appetite. I am ready to stand as your second should the occasion require, Mira."

Mira stopped crewing and looked at Kevin shocked. Why would he offer? He had left her and the kids it had been a shock she hadn't fully dealt with but she planned to honor his wishes and hadn't plan to ask anything from him.

She had already chosen her 2nd ishari. The woman was every bit as deadly as Isbethal only Ishari was Caitian and Betazoid.

M'Niras nodded. "Not to worry, Commander in order to accept the challenge a 2nd would have been named at that time. I am guessing since the both of you are not sharing quarters. One or both of you have called this thing off?"

Before either one could answer M'Niras nodded to Proll. "I'll take the second quarters next to mine. Security is much tighter in the Ambassador’s wing for Mira and the children. "

Mira was frowning looking down at her food. The fork in her hand moving the food around. How had all this happened? She had been happy on vacation with Kevin. He had talked about them being engaged and getting rings. Sure they hadn't talked about a second child but that had been out of both their control. Still she was just as much their child as Kolar. Perhaps he found playing the field more to his liking? Her eyebrow scrunched together. Again something completely out of her control.

She dropped her fork "No, I don't need or want your protection Uncle. I haven't needed it since I was 15 years old. Yes a name had been sent as my 2nd. Since you weren't around I didn't think you would be interested. " She told Kevin as she stood up.
"Sorry Gentleman but the conversations and food isn't agreeing with me. I need to sleep." Mira gave them a nodded not meeting anyone's eyes then walked out.

Montgomery frowned since when was the two of them over? He hadn't heard anything about that. "Well under the circumstances I will see that my Captain gets back to her quarters and to her appointment tomorrow morning. " He stopped "thank you for a wonderful meal."

He left quickly before Proll or M'Niras could tell him not to. Mira had to be devastated to have Kevin just walk off and leave her and the kids.

Rashard laughed "Oh, I can't wait to see her again."

K'ner's examinations of the crew had discovered that there hadn't been the muscle deterioration that one would normally expect after ten months of being bed ridden. In fact, many of the crew were in a healthier state than they had been previously. Which is why Kevin, in one swift moment, was able to launch himself across the dining table and knocked Rashard out of his chair. He was in the process of choking the life out of the Gato's captain when Proll and Crus pulled him off.

{Corridor deck 2, SB364}

Montgomery's long legs caught up with her quickly but he said nothing as they walked until they reached her quarters "Captain I will be here at 6:00 am, to escort you to the Tal'Kir. "

Mira turned to look at him then nodded as she went in a locked to door shutting out the universe from her.

{Personal quarters, SB364}

Zimia was sleeping in the kids room. So she changed into blue silky shorts and a matching camisole top. Took a bottle of whiskey and set on the floor in front for the fireplace. "Computer Fire on, set an alarm for 5:30am and set all communications on do not disturb" She wasn't dealing with M'Niras. If Proll wanted her well he could get security to let him in or whatever. She was done.

Taking a nice long swig from the bottle feeling the burn going all the way down. Her eyes just watched the flames. In a short time the bottle was half empty and her head was as numb as the rest of her. She pulled a pillow off the couch along with a blanket. Yeah, why couldn't she just stay this numb forever?

{Montgomery's Quarters, SB364}

Jeffery had just gotten to sleep when the comm badge chimed. He rolled over to grab the communicator from his night stand and activated it. "Montgomery, here," he said.

"Sorry to wake you, Lt. Commander, but one of our officers has been detained by Starbase security," the Norris' duty officer reported, "I tried to contact the Captain but she is on 'do not distrub'."

"I'm sure that Commander Lance would be happy to handle it for her," Jeffery remarked with a yawn.

"The officer that was detained is Commander Lance."

Jeffrey's eyes shot open. This couldn't be good.

:off

Commander Kevin Lance
Executive Officer
USS Chuck Norris

and


Captain Mira Rodale
CO USS Chuck Norris