Post 39 - The Romulan and the Irishman

Posted on Sun May 9th, 2021 @ 10:55pm by Lieutenant Commander Emni t'Nai & Lieutenant Kennedy Ryan Walsh

Mission: The Waiting Game
Location: A Small Cafe in downtown Delphi
Timeline: MD 71 - 0945 Hours

Delphi's main street was a bustling place, various shops, eateries, and holo-suites dotted the street. Midway down the main street the thoroughfare shifted from one that allowed traffic to one that supported only pedestrians. Emni sat at a small round table, it's make up resembling an ironwrought structure with a glass top that allowed diners to view the table's artistry from above. A wide, brightly colored, umbrella spanned the distance above her blocking the bright sun, and giving her a modicum of shade from where she sat.

It had been with great interest that she received the missive from Kennedy Ryan Walsh yesterday afternoon upon return to her room for a change of attire and brief rest before heading out in search of dinner. She knew that their new assignment had been identified, but was surprised to learn that any of the new crew were planet-side, let alone her newly appointed ACMO. So it was with a great deal of curiosity that she had suggested they meet for coffee and a late breakfast to get to know each other a bit.

She had told Kennedy to plan for 10 am, but she found herself early. Irynya had recommended this particular cafe on the basis that it served breakfast fare from a number of different planets, Romulus among them. And so it was that she found herself seated at the table with two hands wrapped around a warm cup of the Romulan equivalent to coffee.

Kennedy was anxious to meet his new direct superior in an informal and social setting prior to being posted to his upcoming assignment. He jumped at the opportunity when Doctor t'Nai suggested that the two meet up and become acquainted while on shore leave. Although, he was more eager to return to practicing medicine compared to being a long-term vacationer, full time resident on Risa. He didn't want to have a repeat of yesterday in sleeping in. He had set a dozen alarms to ensure that he would make it preferably early to the set place, she arranged for them to meet.

He spotted the place across the thoroughfare. He looked both ways out of habit, he realized he could have walked down the roadway instead of sticking to the side paths. He made a note of that but shortly forgot it as he made his way across the street. He pulled his sunglasses up above his eyes while he tried to spot her.

Emni looked up from contemplation of her coffee as a young man, slightly shorter than herself, approached. He was clean shaven and tidily dressed even by shore leave standards. A pair of sunglasses perched on his head as if they had been slid upwards to grant the viewer a better perspective. His emotional signature preceded him, a mixture of uncertainty, curiosity, and nervous anticipation flowing outward from him and standing out amidst the more laid back vacation-like emotional states of the diners around her. That had to be him.

Taking a chance Emni raised her hand and waved. "Dr. Ryan Walsh?" she called.

Kennedy heard his name being called from behind him. He pivoted on his feet to see the woman sitting at a table with her hand raised and waved him over, he began to walk towards her, he stumbled on his own feet before balancing himself in front of her table, coming close to knocking the table over. Kennedy, with his cheeks reddened with some embarrassment. He looked down at her at the table, "Doctor t'Nai?"

Emni had to work to keep her face neutral although a smile threatened to break through. She didn't want her new ACMO to think she was being derisive, but she was finding, as shore leave drew out longer and longer, that laugher was almost always a positive. It was an odd thing to return to the formality of officer relationships and for a brief moment she wondered what that would be like when the group of them boarded their newly assigned ship.

"Indeed," she responded by way of answer to the younger man's inquiry. "Have a seat. Are you hungry? I haven't placed a breakfast order just yet."

Kennedy pulled the chair out slightly from the table and sat down across from her. He slowly and uncomfortably returned his smile to Emni. He hadn't dined at this establishment so he wasn't familiar with what was on the menu. He could eat, nodding his head he replied, "I could eat."

The Romulan doctor handed over a small PADD containing the menu for the restaurant. She had taken the opportunity to peruse while waiting and had an idea of what she wanted, but waited the requisite time for Kennedy to decide before waiving the Risian server back over so they could place their orders.

Waiter summoned, Emni picked up her cup, wrapping both hands around it and sipping as she leaned back in her chair. "How are you finding Risa?" she asked, opting for a little bit of small talk to start things out. She got the impression from the nervous entrance and Dr. Ryan Walsh's overall emotional fingerprint that he might not be particularly comfortable. She hoped a bit of small talk would help with that.

Kennedy took the small PADD gently and began to browse through the breakfast options. He found a few options that he would internally debate until the wait staff came to their table. He hoped it wouldn't be too quick or too slow for him to choose, "I've been here for quite a while. I've seen the sights, I've been trying to go on snorkel tour... but... I.. uh slept in... and I never do that."

"Sorry, I don't mean to rumble, or is it mumble?" Kennedy asked himself as he placed his hand underneath his chin while contemplating the question but then decided to turn her question back to her. "What about you? How are you enjoying Risa?"

Emni paused, thinking a moment. "It's been, mostly enjoyable. I don't typically find this much downtime to be desirable, but it has been good to enjoy some time on the planet and to move at a slower pace."

She lifted her cup to her lips, taking a deep draught of the warm liquid. The drink smelled and tasted like home. She would have to remember to compliment the chef. Now that the source of the drink's unique flavor was so hard to come by replicated copies were the easiest to obtain and she had found that few had come close to the flavor of a fresh cup.

The two sat in a companionable silence for a few minutes before Emni spoke again. "Have you been to the Delta Quadrant before?" she inquired.

Kennedy was about to answer her question with an open mouth the server came to their table, "Could I get you a refreshment, sir?"

"Coffee, please." Kennedy replied.

"Would you like another, ma'am?" The waiter looked over to Emni. "And do you both need more time with the menus?"

Emni drained her cup and nodded. "Yes, please," she replied. "Please also relay my compliments to your culinary staff. That is one of the best cups I have had since..." she paused a moment, "...well, let's just say it's been a long time. I believe we can order as well," she advised looking to Kennedy for confirmation before relaying her order to the man.

"Fantastic! I'll pass it onto them, they'll be pleased to hear that you enjoyed the coffee." The waiter replied and looked over to Kennedy, "your order, sir?"

"I'll have the eggs benedict with the Risian shrimp," Kennedy ordered.

"Excellent choice," the waiter looked over to Emni, "and yourself, ma'am?"

The Romulan doctor gave her order, already imagining the treat of a Romulan breakfast. If the beverages were any indicator the food should be equally good.

"Another excellent choice, I'll be back with your coffees." The server scurried off while assisting another customer before headed back into the restaurant.

"I haven't been to the Delta Quadrant yet," Kennedy replied. "I've spent most of my time patrolling Federation space along the Romulan Neutral Zone."

In a decidedly Vulcanoid motion Emni's right eyebrow crept up. "That's certainly a different experience than it used to be, I am sure," she noted.

"Well, what would you like to know?" she inquired. "We'll be working rather closely and there's quite a few crew members from my old ship assigned to this one. I'm glad to share any information that might be helpful to you for settling in."

"What is frontier medicine like?" Kennedy inquired. "Encounter any interesting in terms of disease and viruses?"

Emni thought back to their last mission and suppressed a shudder. "I wouldn't say we encountered anything interesting in the sense that we had time to evaluate and work with it," she said, choosing her words carefully so as not to alarm the younger man. "But the Delta Quadrant isn't the friendliest of places. In that sense it truly is frontier medicine. We do get to look at a lot of new things, but equally we have to react to unfriendly responses."

She picked up her drink to sip it again before realizing it was already empty. Glancing in the cup to confirm she hadn't left any behind she set it back down.

"Our last mission resulted in an encounter with the Vidiians. Unfortunately it was a hostile encounter and one that I would be loathe to repeat. From a purely medical perspective, though, it did result in some very unexpected medical efforts. They were, undoubtedly, learning experiences."

"I'm sorry to hear that your last mission was horrific," Kennedy commented. He didn't know anything about the Vidiians but he became slightly anxious about heading into the unknown into the Delta Quadrant. On the Reliant they remained in the Alpha and Beta Quadrants. "Do you have any reports that I can read before we report to the Sojourner? I would like to learn more about your medical experiences in the Delta Quadrant. And I'm all out of reading material."

Despite herself Emni couldn't help a small chuckle. "I'm not sure mission reports are the most exciting reading material, but I'll see what I can do to get some over to you."

As she spoke their meals arrived providing a clean break in the subject while the two of them tucked into the meal. Emni couldn't see who or what, exactly, she expected in a new ACMO, but, if nothing else, she suspected they would get along just fine.

=/\= A Mission Post By =/\=

Lieutenant Emni t'Nai
Chief Medical Officer
USS-Sojourner, newly assigned

Lieutenant JG Kennedy Ryan Walsh
Assistant Chief Medical Officer
USS-Sojourner, newly assigned