Accepting the Invitation

Posted on Mon Jul 24th, 2017 @ 10:19am by Colonel S'er'in'e & Captain Liarra Von

Mission: Indomitable Will
Timeline: Back Post

BACKPOST


It came as no surprise that a pair of golden furred Guardians stood by the airlock door to the ship, a pair of Starfleet security officers stood the same on the station side of the door. Notification of Von's acceptance was made known and the Guardians patiently waited for her. The one assigned to 're-training' S'er'in'e had already reported his progress, while he had much to undergo yet his progress was promising, even if it was against a female.

Liarra approached Mar'ess's ship, S'er'in'e's advice filling her thoughts. After their first meeting went so poorly, Von was still amazed that the Overseer was willing to meet with her again. She needed to be careful to not cause any further problems. She tugged at her dress uniform to smooth out any wrinkles, though the tailored jacket stayed firm. It was more of a nervous tic than it was a useful gestured. But Liarra paid it no mind as she took a deep breath before reaching the airlock.

When the door opened the Guardians observed Von though such efforts masked by the armours masks they wore. Nothing was said, nothing needed to be said. They knew why Von's purpose here so it came as no surprise that Von was scanned. This may be Von's station but this was their Overseer and they had a sworn duty to her. When the scan proved all clear the door to the ship opened and another pair of Guardians waited for her. They eyed the PADD which on it held the information Mar'ess had requested but though nothing of it if she was permitted past the first pair of Guardians.

Von was escorted to a very large and luxurious set of doors where stood 4 black furred felines all armoured and visibly armed. These were Mar'ess's honour guard. They stopped Von and instructed her to remove her footwear.

Von nodded silently and pulled off her boots, using her toes to hold the heel in place. To her it was a bit of an odd request, but then she knew well enough that some cultures preferred no shoes within the private living areas. She could only assume that this was something similar, though it could just as easily be meant to make her even shorter when compared to the Overseer. Standing in her socked feet, she nudged the shoes next to each other and awaited further instructions. For all she knew it was an insult to pick them up with her hands, so she thought it was better to not assume that it was acceptable.

Seeing that the footwear was removed they opened the doors, all of them kept the eyes on Von as they knew what was behind the good. Mar'ess lounged on many pillows of different sizes. Mar'ess seemed very comfortable, relaxed as she observed the doors open and Von standing there. Mar'ess waved Von to enter and the doors closed behind the Trill. "Captain Von, as I stepped onto your domain, you now step into mine. Please, sit, relax." With just one visible twitch of the ear another Caitian appeared with a tray of various drinks some Von might recognise and others were of Caitian origin.

Von gave Mar'ess a slight bow and took a seat. The offered drinks were of various colors and thicknesses. She selected one somewhat randomly, braving one of the unknown drinks that looked to be the easiest to handle. "Thank you for the invitation, Overseer. I'm honored to be your guest."

"Tell me of your time on the planet." Mar'ess leaping straight into it. She had a score of questions and each were to assess S'er'in'e's actions and Vons. While the verbal report made for an interesting listening there was no doubt things left off an official report and these things Mar'ess wanted to know.

Liarra took in a big breath of air. "Where to start? We were in a shuttle on the way to Cestus III for a conference. It was late after dinner, and the colonel was piloting. We were chatting about something, but I can't remember what. All of a sudden we heard an explosion and the craft started to shudder. He stayed at the helm while I went to the aft compartment. The whole engine was on fire, and smelled like incendiary. There wasn't anything that we could do at that point. The ship was out of control and burning fast. Our lives were in his hands. With little to no engine control, Colonel S'er'in'e forced a rough landing. The ship was destroyed, but we were alive. Unfortunately I suffered a broken leg, but that was no fault of his. Anyone else at the helm and I might not be sitting here today. We were both critically injured. I only found out days later that he was bleeding internally. He had kept that from me so that I wouldn't worry."

She paused a moment to let that part of the story sink in. She wanted to be sure that she emphasized what he had done to save her life. "We spent the next several days on that planet. He mostly had to carry me because I was not able to walk on my broken leg. We sought shelter, and he returned to the shuttle to search for supplies. While he was gone, he overheard some mercenaries who were sent to make sure the explosive on the shuttle did the job. We moved up the mountain, seeking higher ground. Each day we went higher, found a shelter for me to rest, and he went out searching for food, and to make sure that those mercenaries weren't on our trail. Eventually he was forced to confront one of them. From what I heard, he was...thorough. A couple of days later, a ship sent from the station had tracked down our trail. We were beamed up, and received a hot meal and medical attention."

Von shrugged. "That's the short version, I suppose. All I know is that I'm alive because of him." She braved a sip of the drink. It was bittersweet, but had a surprisingly good taste. She took another sip.

"I get the sense you do not approve of our ways." Mar'ess spoke. "I could see how you were when I arrived. I also heard about the fight in the Dive." Mar'ess careful not to reveal too much in the first hand. Mar'ess sipped a drink then put it down. "Tell me of this Human, Samanthia that he is mated to. Is she worthy of him?"

Before Liarra tackled the next question, she steered back to the Overseer's first comment. "Overseer, I would not say that I disapprove of your ways. It is certainly not my place to judge another culture anyway. No doubt you find the ways of my people strange as well. For me, it has not been disapproval, only confusion." She considered her word choice a moment. "Perhaps even confusion is too strong a word. It is my ignorance of your culture, my lack of understanding, that only appears to be disapproval."

She took another sip of the drink before continuing. "I'm afraid I am not too familiar with Ms. Akiashiro. She's a civilian resident of this station, and from what I know she and her family are prominent entrepreneurs." There were rumors, some stronger than others, of their criminal dealings, but Von did not have enough evidence to make a case. And even if she did, now was not the time nor the place to mention that. "We've crossed paths a few times, but it's a large station. It's difficult to know every single resident. That being said, the way S'er'in'e has spoken of her, he certainly thinks very highly of her."

A twitch of one ear signalled to the attendants that they were ready for something to eat. 3 Golden felines appeared with an array of foods from various meats, fish and fruit. "From what you have told me he serves his duties and upholds our traditions. However I can not help but wonder if my warrior is best suited here. Already his exposure has tainted his ways to allow himself to be claimed by a Human when we had four prime females on the Homeworld selected for him." Mar'ess gave a slight pause. "Please, eat."

Liarra graciously selected a sampling of the offered food, and softly thanked the servers. It was only after that fact that it occurred to her that it was not necessary, or preferred, that she treated them as equals. Old habits tended to die hard. She tried a piece of fruit with a similar color to her drink. As she had surmised, it had a very similar flavor, which she was starting to grow fond of. "What do you call this fruit, if I may ask? It is quite delicious." If Mar'ess was going to shift back and forth between small talk and business, then so was she. "Perhaps this assignment does not seem worthy of such a fine warrior. And frankly I don't know how well I could argue otherwise. I'm aware that very few wide-eyed cadets leave the Academy hoping to land a posting here. But S'er'in'e is one of the finest warriors that I have ever met, and I could not imagine this station without his presence. I owe him my life many times over, a dept that I may never be able to pay back. And I do not believe that his time here has tainted him. If anything, it's taught him how important it is to uphold your traditions. A mix of cultures do not have to be bad. My people share many lifetimes with the symbionts inside us. Through these lifetimes, we are able to explore many cultures, travel to many worlds, experience many lives and occupations. We live many lives through our shared memories. I feel that I've grown because of the lives that Von has lived, because of the experiences it experienced. But even through all of that, I still know what it means to be me. Perhaps even more so because I know what it's like to be someone else. S'er'in'e may be away from his people, but the absence of others like him just makes him try that much harder to be the best warrior that he can be, to show the rest of us the light that is your culture." Liarra paused a moment and took a bite of one of the meats, a juicy piece of something that looked like steak. She swallowed and nodded approvingly. "This is delicious as well. Your chefs are as skilled as your warriors."

"Thank you, we take pride in our foods, especially those of our world." Mar'ess replied. She explained to Von that she would await a report from the Guardian assigned to reeducate S'er'in'e. If he did well then he would be allowed to stay, if not, then he would be taken to the Homeworld. What that meant for Samanthia she didn't care, a Human had no place with one of her warriors anyway. As time went on more selections of food and drink were brought forward for them to share though the air of coldness remained between the two.