A Toss of a Coin Part I
Posted on Sat Mar 23rd, 2024 @ 6:06pm by Lieutenant Vincent 'Ghost' Zandrell & Lieutenant Loktor & Pepper
Edited on on Mon Mar 25th, 2024 @ 6:37pm
0 words; about a 1 minute read
Mission:
The Sins of History
Location: The Sidebar Lounge - Deck 5 - USS Artemis
Timeline: MD006 2100 hrs
Pepper didn't have much to do at the moment, so she decided it was a good time to familiarize herself with the ship. To her, that meant walking its corridors to not only get a feel for her new "home," but to get a feel for the other residents. She didn't want to draw attention to herself, so she wore a pair of black pants, a forest-green shirt that draped to her hips and an unbuttoned black vest. It was familiar and comfortable and didn't hinder her movement. To keep her fingers limber, she practiced playing with a coin and tossing it in the air as she walked.
Vincent sat at a table in the lounge. He was close to a viewport, so he could look out and watch the stars passing by, but also away from most officers who were also there. On the table was an untouched drink and three PADDs at arm’s length. He needed to get back into the swing of things, so he was reviewing all he could about the ship and its functions. He wasn't just XO of their ESU, but also a tactical officer, so he would be counted on to man that station if the chief was ever away for any reason. It had been a long time since he was part of a crew and he was determined to not make a fool of himself. These people were counting on him and he didn't want to let them down.
She walked into the lounge and caught her coin, holding it in her hand as she looked around, taking note of who was there and where they were seated. Three officers sat at the bar, nursing drinks. One chose the far corner, which appeared to give a good view of the lounge in general. She'd have to try it some time to gauge whether or not it was the best place to sit.
Eighteen officers and enlisted personnel sat at various tables, most in pairs or small groups. One man sat alone near the viewport, a small stack of PADDs near his drink. That, too, seemed to be a good table if you wanted to be alone and stare into space. But he didn't have the look or feel of a typical Starfleet officer, which intrigued her inner PI.
After stopping by the bar to get a drink, she headed for a table near him to see what she could learn.
Loktor walked into the bar, looking for Vincent, immediately getting some attention as its not every day you see a Ferengi in Uniform. Once he saw him sitting at the table, he made his way there and took a seat across from him. "Hey? You look busy. Are you busy? You look busy?"
Vincent looked up, chuckling softly to himself, before looking back down at the PADD. "Just going over things. I want to make sure I am up to date on anything that has changed since the last time I was in uniform. What's up?"
"I wanted to talk to you about something. Something, you know, important. But..." He hesitated slightly, placing his hand on the drink that Vincent didn't seem to be drinking, as he slid it slowly further away. "If you are busy... then... I can come back."
"Something tell I am not as busy as you want me to be." Vincent replied with a bit of a laugh. "I'm not drinking that, by the way, you can have it."
Loktor smiled a bit, not from getting a drink, but that Vincent hadn't touched it. He brought the drink to his nose, tilted his head slightly to look passed Vincent, before looking back to him with a smirk. He sniffed the drink than placed it back on the table. "Not my style, but thank you." He slid the drink away and gestured to one of the serves to approach. "I will take up on your offer into joining you. I am getting the sense I won't regret it. Neither will you."
"Why are you acting weird?" Vincent questioned.
"I'm a Ferengi who doesn't seek profit and would rather give whatever he gains to charity." He replied with an odd looked before adding. "That's generally looked upon on weird so... maybe it’s just you." Loktor gave a slight laugh before looking to the server. "I'll have a Starduster. Oh and..." He motioned for the server to come closer so he could whisper something into their ear. Once he was done, the server nodded and walked away.
"Yeah... you are typically weird." He replied with a raised brow before gesturing to the server. "What was that about? The whispering?"
"Oh... you'll see." Loktor replied with a smirk. "All part of the fun."
Pepper noticed the Ferengi walk in and narrowed her eyes. She knew him from the starbase... Well, know wasn't the right word. remembered was more accurate. He'd piqued her interest then by his behavior. Then he'd looked and acted like he was waiting for an illicit contact. So, what was he doing here? And why were they both in Starfleet uniforms? She could ask the computer, and probably would, but right now she decided she could just pay attention and play it by ear. Like her magic, it never hurt to practice.
And then the waiter brought her a Jamaican Sorrel. She glanced over at Loktor, assuming that he was the person who sent her the drink, and raised an eyebrow.
The waiter walked over to their table and placed the Starduster by Loktor, who immediately took a sip from the straw that came with it. "Mmm... that's a great Starduster." He said as the waiter walked off. Before Vincent had a chance to say anything, Loktor immediately said. "So... about those illegal weapons you were asking for? Did you want me to add the chemical weapons to the bill or are you paying for those separately? I know those are for a different incident than the first so I wanted to make sure I got everything settled away, because... as you know... chemical weapons are so hard to ship on when it comes to other weapons. You want to make sure nothing sets it off during transit and that creates a new issue all together. It's a pain. Plus... the fees. Don't get me started on those." He took another sip of his drink and again asked. "Are you sure you don't want one? It's really good."
Vincent looked immediately confused, and uncomfortable, as all of this came out of nowhere. "I'm sorry... what?" He held his hands up quickly and looked around. "What the hell are you talking about?"
"You know... the weapons... for the thing?" Loktor questioned as he shrugged his shoulders. "Why else would you want to meet a Ferengi and insist on this ridiculous costume. You know my people like to wear gaudy suits to pretend like we have more latinum than we actually have. I feel... poor."
Vincent looked around quickly before immediately leaning in and whispering. "Did you hit your head or something?"
Loktor just winked back at him and whispered in return. "Wait... for it."
A Joint Post By
Lieutenant Vincent 'Ghost' Zandrell
Tactical Officer, USS Artemis
Executive Officer, Emergency Services Unit
Starfleet Criminal Investigations Unit
Lieutenant Loktor
Criminal Investigations Officer, USS Artemis
Starfleet Criminal Investigations Unit
Pepper
Private Investigator, USS Artemis
Starfleet Criminal Investigations Unit
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