Duffman... Say A Lot Of Things

Posted on Mon Dec 14th, 2015 @ 10:48am by Commander Jordan Gunning & Venin & Duff McAllister & Karx

Mission: By Dawn's Early Light
Location: Alexander's [Deck 1869, Starbase 332]

Venin glared across the table and tried his hardest not to bare his teeth as the Starfleet hewmon pored over his books. He was offended, not least because he had barely seen the man since they had taken over the tenancy but because he didn't trust he abilities as a book-keepers.

The man eventually looked up. "I'll need to give these to my accountant to have a look at."

The Ferengi tried not to snatch the document back. "Is that really necessary?"

Jordan Gunning looked at him over the edge of the PADD, slightly raising an eyebrow as he looked at Venin and his brother Karx who had - at least up until now - kept silent.

Karx had been keeping one eye on the new waitress, whom he was certain was collecting tips without sharing the appropriate percentage with the management. She was also terrible at up-selling. The motion of his brother's attempt at snatching the PADD drew his attention back to the table and the hew-mon owner. "I can assure you, Commander," Karx said, having kept up with the conversation despite his split attention, "that my brother's bookkeeping skills are second to none. You could consult with a third party accountant, but that would just be unnecessary spending when your profit margins are already thin."

Gunning grimaced. He wasn't in it for the money, but he didn't like being fleeced either.

Duff returned to the promenade later in the evening to get something to eat, his earlier conversation with the Ferengi. He chose a bar named Alexander's. Some habits died hard. Back in his younger days in Starfleet Duff frequented many starbase bars and taverns. Now alone and without crewman, or a starship; the bar was the closest thing to a home.

After sitting down at an empty table and ordering a beer and some pretzels, he began to read through his notes for tomorrow's headline story.

Karx spotted him immediately and knew that the waitress hadn't spent nearly enough time with him to convince him to order the special steak. His was a face Karx hadn't seen before; not in Alexander's and not anywhere on the station. There were tens of thousands of people in the Starbase, but something told Karx that this one was new. "Who is that hew-mon?" he asked, pointing across at him.

Gunning shrugged without giving more than a cursory glance - most of his attention was focused on the PADD. Venin though had noticed the same thing as his brother. "I don't know but that girl has not given him the correct level of service. Brother, would you deal with him personally?"

Karx snarled, grumbled and shuffled over to the hew-mon. He put on what he had always thought was his most charming smile and approached the customer. "Good evening, sir," he said, bowing ever so slightly. "Welcome to Alexander's, I must apologise for some of our staff; they are not as ... dedicated to customer service as they should be. Have you had a chance to look over the specials tonight? I highly recommend the special steak."

"I guess I'll try the special steak. If I end up in sickbay you will receive the full brunt of my pen as the pen is mightier than the sword." Nodding to the Ferengi he returned to his notes. Focused on his notes once more he made some notes based on the encounter with the Ferengi earlier. Maybe after his meal he could ask a few questions of his waiter.

---

Commander Jordan Gunning
Chief of Security

Duff McAllister
FNS Correspondent

Venin [NPC: Gunning]
Karx [NPC: Drusus]
Operators - Alexander's