Cudgel Ball

Posted on Wed Aug 7th, 2024 @ 1:00am by Lieutenant Irynya & Lieutenant Xex Wang & Lieutenant Axod Qo & Ensign Grosh Frav

Mission: Mean Green Queen
Location: Holodeck, Deck 5
Timeline: Mission Day 4 at 1600

For a Tellarite, Grosh had a rather trim build. He was also taller than average. Still, he had solid muscle mass characteristic of his species and he liked to show that off, especially in the when he was playing sports or working out.

He wore a SOJO sleeveless tee shirt (which he'd cropped ever so slightly so that it fell right above his waistband), and pair of standard issue shorts that he got during his first year at the Academy so they hugged him in all the right places. He had his braids pulled up into a knot atop his head. In one hand he held a rather large water bottle and in the other he held his cudgel tightly. The ensign stopped at the terminal outside of the Holodeck and checked the time. He was early, but decided to get set up. "Computer, begin program Frav-Tellar-Three and adjust safety protocols to my personal preference.

The computer chirped in response, and then responded. "Program is active, enter when ready." In it's typical voice.

"Computer, play a selection of Klingon Acid Punk, one quarter volume." The Tellarite said as the large Holodeck doors slid apart. The sounds of Gik'Tal, a well known Klingon acid punk band, began to spew from the room's unseen speakers. Grosh smiled as he entered the room which had been transformed into a muddy pit that sat before a very damp looking mountainscape. He set his water bottle aside and stepped into the mud with his cudgel. He began to run through what warmups he would present in his head.

"...certain I shouldn't have eaten quite that many but they were--" Xex was saying back over his shoulder to someone as the holodeck's doors opened. He stopped mid-sentence as he was greeted with what felt like a wall of moisture, coupled with a rather daunting view. He stepped absently to the side to allow Axod space to enter beside him, their earlier conversation forgotten as he took in the environs, including the Tellarite warming up in the mud pit. And of course the music. Taken all together...

Xex glanced from the mud to Grosh to Grosh's cudgel to his own cudgel to Axod. "I fear my research into this game was somewhat lacking," he said, and then leaning closer added, "I hope the ornamentation is not compulsory." His expression was one part embarrassed chagrin, two parts anticipatory excitement; Xex patently loved surprises.

Intimate, private comments never failed to stretch Axod's face into a smile. "I wish I'd done research at all. I certainly wouldn't have worn white." He looked down at his white woven tunic top and his flowing white pants. This was typical attire for sporting on Doosodaria, and he hadn't thought it may not be appropriate. It certainly suited the climate that the Holodeck was approximating. Had he not known better, he may have believed he was in The Swamp City back home, but there was something synthetic about environment's moisture that could never fool him.

Xex smirked, perhaps agreeing with the Doosodarian's assertion about the color of his garments, and left it at that.

The music changed, and yet another Klingon punk song filled the room with guttural sounds. "Is this Gik'Tal?" The Counselor asked turning to face Xex. He wasn't exactly a fan, but he had read some journals about the use of Klingon Acid Punk in music therapy and then took it upon himself to seek out the genre for himself and familiarize himself with the genre's greats.

If Xex had been about to answer about the ins and outs of Klingon acid punk, he was forestalled by a new voice.

"Ooh mud!" The exclamation came from a warm feminine voice behind Xex and Qo. Irynya, having entered only a few moments behind the two, was peering around them to take in the mud pit with its resident Tellarite engineer. With an unreasonably enthusiastic smile the Risian half skipped around the two medical chiefs to head for the pit. Her cudgel, tipped back against her shoulder, was almost perfectly proportional to her body and she wore tight black fitted athletic shorts and a black SOJO tank top that, as always, seemed to be in constant disagreement about where it should rest on her hips. Her hair, normally held in a low ponytail, was set high on the back of her head and then woven in an intricate knot-like circle to make a loose bun. "Do you recommend warming up in the pit or out here for newbies?" she asked Grosh with a glimmer of giddy enthusiasm in her eyes.

"Oh good," Xex breathed a sigh of relief, following the Risian up to the edge of the mud pit. "We aren't the only ones who haven't played before. You did promise to go gentle on us," he added, raising his voice to be heard by the stretching Tellarite. One glimpse of the man's rather impressive physique was quite enough to make Xex briefly question his life choices. One additional glance around the playing field calmed him somewhat; it looked exactly as interesting as Grosh had described it. Hopefully he wouldn't come to regret this new activity.

Grosh squealed excitedly as he noticed his comrades enter the holodeck. He moved to the edge of the mud pit to speak with them. At five foot ten the mud came up to Grosh's knee. "I think it best to warm up in the mud." He said in response to Iry. "It helps you get used to the sensation." He smiled widely. With his cudgel still in hand he took his free hand and grabbed a handful of mud, tossing it in the direction of Xex and Axod. "I don't remember saying anything about going easy on you." He laughed. "You should be in better health than all of us anyways." He winked at the grey haired doctor.

Xex tried to step to the side, but found himself up against Axod and able to go no further. As it was, they both stumbled a little, and the mud ended up catching the doctor in the hip. Laughing, he reached out his non-cudgel-wielding hand to help steady himself and Axod both. "At least it's not icy," he said, squishing the glop of mud into his loose-fitting exercise pants, then smearing it all the way down his thigh in an effort to stop it soaking in too much. As he did so, he continued, "There is absolutely no reason I should be in better health than anyone else. After all, there's no one on board to tell me how I should be healthier."

That said, he stepped away from Axod and peered intently down at the mud. Glancing once aside to the counselor, and then once to Irynya, he shrugged. "I suppose I do always say, 'no time like the present...'" With no further ado, Xex jumped firmly down into the mud, which squelched obligingly out of the way, flowing up to his knees. He swayed slightly side to side, getting a feel for it. With an eye on Grosh for the Tellarite's exercise, Xex began to mimic them as best he could with a cudgel in hand, figuring he knew best in which ways they were going to have to move.

Ax followed suit and got himself into the mud pit with ease. It was safe to say that his white pants, and the rest of his ensemble, were ruined. Funnily, Axod didn't care. He was delighted to have been invited to participate in a part of Ensign Frav's culture. Truthfully, Ax knew very little about Tellarite culture, which was a shock to him when he thought about that fact especially considering the Tellarites were a founding member of the Federation.

The Doosodarian decided in the moment to embrace the mud. He dropped to his knees, white outfit be damned, and with both hands smeared mud all over himself until he was fully covered from hear to toe. "Best to get that out of the way now." He said. his smile seemed whiter when surrounded by a mask of mud.

Xex's eyebrows arched at this display of clothing destruction, but as Axod's smile broke through the mud, he found he couldn't stop his own grin from appearing. "Is it?" he asked rhetorically, holding back a laugh. Axod was saved from answering-- rhetorical or not-- by Grosh's noisy movements.

Cudgel above his head, Grosh began to lift his knees up, almost marching in place. The sound of the mud squelching with his steps blended into the sounds of Klingon Acid Punk. "I'm really excited to find some people who are interested in trying Cudgel Ball. It really is the best way to stay active." He began squatting between steps, low enough to muddy the back of his well fitted shorts. "It'll be nice to not be playing with holograms." He declared excitedly.

Irynya was last into the pit, holding her cudgel above her head she sat on the side and then slid down into the mud, a move which turned out to be in her favor. As the shortest of the group the mud came up to her mid-thigh and losing her balance in the pit would certainly have resulted in something nearing a full engulfment of the Risian. The mud itself, she determined, was a disappointing temperature. She was no stranger to mud, but typically it was quite cool and refreshing or warm and soothing. This mud was a lukewarm sort of temperature that evoked the kind of day on Risa that they had built weather regulators to avoid. Still, she enjoyed the sensation of it and grinned at the other three men when she found her footing.

Like Xex, Irynya found herself mimicking Grosh, but with some modifications to account for the fact that her knees were sunk several inches below the mud. Silently she found herself grateful for muscular thighs. "So..." she said after a moment of sweat-inducing movement, "any tips for your newbies Frav?"

Xex began to squelch his own knees up and down clearly delighted with the sensation and sound both. He twisted his torso, bracing the cudgel between his outstretched arms, an extra counterbalance to his stretching. "It's certainly a way to stay active," Xex agreed, smirking, "Depending who wins, we shall have to see if it's the best way. Some tips would be much appreciated," he added to Iry's request.

Ax nodded affirmatively, eager to take any advice that Grosh might want to impart on the newcomers. The mud began to harden on his arms and much of his upper body, but it wasn't any sort of hindrance for the exercise.

Stopping his movements and lowering his cudgel, Grosh snorted happily. "Cudgel Ball is as physical as it is mental. I'm sure you all know how integral debate is to Tellarite culture. so much so, that it is the foundation of this sport as well. Keeping your voice even and your wits about you are key to scoring." He reached for a round objects at the edge of the pit. "The objects it to hit this ball," He indicated the leather bound sphere in his hand." into an opponents post using your cudgel. The defender can challenge the point via debate with the scorer, or by unfooting the scorer."

Almost absent mindedly mimicking Grosh's movements, Irynya paused when he did. She watched as he hefted the ball and tried not to smirk too much when he indicated that an even voice and wits were what was needed most. "What are the arguments typically based on? If a player hits the post then that seems like a fairly straightforward element to prove. You either did or you did not. Is it safe to assume when a hit is entirely obvious that a player should choose to unfoot their opponent rather than debating?" Her head was tilted slightly with the curiosity that was so deeply ingrained in her, but even as the Risian's focus centered on Grosh, her fingers moved languidly through the mud, digging small gullies around her in ever swirling patterns.

Grosh smirked. "Arguments could cover topics ranging from perceived unfair moves, to the size of your opponents mother's tusks. Typically, in regulation play, arguments are to be contained to topics of gameplay." He absentmindedly reached up and tightened the knot he had his braids tied in. "Keeping in mind, the arguments are not meant to prove whether or not the hit happened, but rather that you are able to get the better of your opponent." He took in a deep breath. "But yes, many do choose to simply unfoot their competitor. Though, among Tellarite company, that is a double edged sword. Possibly proving that one is not an adept debater, but also showcasing that one is physically more powerful than their opponent." Ensign Frav shrugged nonchalantly. "I personally make no judgment, especially in mixed fellowship."

"Oof," Xex muttered in an aside to Axod, "If my mother's tusks aren't even off-limits..." but he quieted as Grosh continued, clarifying Irynya's question.

Having also stopped the warmup routine, Ax was nodding as Frav spoke. "Sounds like the Tellarite traditions would be pretty entertaining to watch." He decided to pull off his muddied shirt as it was clinging to his torso. As he tossed his shirt to the side of the pit, and stood with his mud smeared chest exposed to his opponents. He retrieved his cudgel held it behind his head. He looked around at his comrades. "Should we make this game interesting and raise the stakes?" He asked.

Xex lifted an eyebrow. "The mud, maternal insults, and blunt-force weapons are not interesting enough for you?" he asked, swinging his cudgel in illustration. It was clear that the good doctor was not the most martial of humanoids; the cudgel looked awkward in his hand, and swung at a noticeably slower speed than that of their Tellarite teacher. Then, grinning, his skepticism dissolving, he added, "What did you have in mind?"

Ax smiled mischievously, "I got assigned a shift cleaning out the waste filter on the holodeck next week. Loser switches for that shift?" He dreaded being assigned to this task, even though it only came around every once in a while. If he could get out of it, he had to try. After all, he had nothing to lose really.

A guffaw escaped Grosh, sounding as thought it came from deep within him. The Tellarite nearly folded in half from the force of his laughter. "I think that sufficiently raises the stakes." He continued to chuckle. "I'm in." He looked around at his companions as if he were issuing them all a challenge.

Several unreasonably infantile and inappropriate musings ran through Irynya's head at the proposed challenge--not least of these a particular program that Timmoz had once introduced her to. No one liked to clean out the holodeck waste filters. "I'm in," she said airily as if the challenge had zero bearing on the stakes of the game. Then she centered a look on Qo and grinned. "And, of course, you are going down."

"Hangon hangon hangon," Xex said, stepping forward as he stopped swinging his cudgel. "Don't let that angelic face fool you. This is win-win for you, dear Ax," he said, turning to face the counselor. "If you lose, you keep the job you already had. If you win, you get a better job. So I propose," and now, Xex's silvery features took on a positively wicked cast, "that we all throw in our least favorite duties. Loser swaps with winner. Deal?"

Ax nodded, his smile not fading. "Fine." He licked his lips slowly. "Let's get to it!" The sounds of the Klingon music was really amping him up and getting him the mood to be active and aggressive. Maybe music contributed to the Klingon demeanour. He lifted his cudgel in the air and looked for his same exuberance in his comrades.

Grosh pounded on his chest and echoed Axon's words, "Let's get to it!" He pointed to coloured posts along the perimeter of the mud pit and indicated to his companions to move towards their posts. The Tellarite made his way to the middle of the pit and placed the mud coated ball. "We will have the computer countdown and race for the ball. Cudgels should only make contact with the ball, not the players, since we're mostly beginners. You can move wherever you'd like in the field, but don't forget to protect your post." He swung his cudgel around as he walked towards his post. "Everyone ready?"

The picture of an innocent easy target, Irynya settled her cudgel over her shoulder and made for her assigned post, stopping a foot or two before it and then centering herself on the balls of her feet deep down below the mud. "Ready when you are," she called in an almost singsong tone before she muttered in a voice loud enough that anyone near her could hear, "This is some slippery stuff." And then, as if in demonstration she did a small half slide to her right and then left, a playful amusement in her entire demeanor. Where the others may have appeared amped up, she stood out like a sore... and perhaps unprepared... thumb.

"How would I know?" Xex asked in an aside to Axod, his question sounding entirely genuine. He certainly didn't feel ready, knee-deep in mud with an unfamiliar tool-- weapon?-- in his hand. Nevertheless, he wasn't sure how he would get more ready, so he followed suit, casting a glance over his shoulder at his post, and backing up toward it. When he was in touching distance, he paused, glancing at Grosh, and mimicking the Tellarite's position.

At the signal from Grosh, the acid punk lowered in volume and the computer obligingly began the countdown from ten. Xex shifted his weight and his position ever so slightly, tightening his grip on his cudgel. He had the uncomfortable suspicion that if he dropped it, he'd never find it again. Playing cudgel ball without a cudgel seemed unwise.

"Three," the computer intoned, "two... one... begin."

After the build-up, the starting gun seemed anti-climatic-- or it would have seemed so if not for the explosion of energy from the players. Xex caught a lucky foot against the base of his post as he surged forward sloshing through the mud like a man possessed as he raced toward the the ball, the punk music rising in volume again and goading him forward.

A quick glance at the other players racing for the ball told him all he needed to know about his chances of getting to it first. Still, Xex forced himself forward and, swapping the cudgel to his other hand, made a wild swing for the little ball, sitting so serenely atop the mud. A slosh of mud from one of the bodies across from him gave the ball a little nudge, just enough to send it into the end of his cudgel, which clipped its edge and sent it skittering away toward the edge of the mud pit, in the vague direction of one of the posts.-- he couldn't remember whose-- and with a whoop of delight, he chased after it.

Axod had elected not to make a run for the ball and end up consumed in that foray, instead he stayed by his post. Ready as ever to defend. He kept his eyes on the playing field as Xex took control of the ball and then hit it towards Grosh's post and started in the direction. Still, Ax stayed ever vigilant at his post, cudgel held firmly over his shoulder ready to swing.

Smiling as Xex started their game, Grosh leaped towards where the ball landed and tossed it in the air, mud falling from its smooth leather binding. With a forceful swing, he hit the ball with decent precision to firmly hit Irynya's post. dropping his arms, He puffed out his chest and approached her, eager to defend his scored goal.

Irynya grinned sweetly at the approaching Tellarite. Her post had, most certainly, been hit. And, quietly, she was glad because now she had a much clearer picture of what to expect and could better plan for defensive and offensive positions. "Well Mr. Frav," she said in the same sort of innocent tone she'd used earlier before the game -- anyone who knew her well might have balked at this. Irynya was many things, but sweet and innocent weren't necessarily amongst those -- "what have you got to say for yourself?"

The Tellarite grinned toothily as Iry approached. His tusks gleamed with fresh wet mud. He squared his shoulders and moved himself in close at Irynya's question. "Your mother raised a weak, small creature who can't even defend a single post against my superior athletic prowess." A smug smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. He leaned on cudgel and awaited the smaller woman's response. He was truly curious to find out how non-Tellarites would fare in this aspect of the sport. Many species were not properly suited to volley insults and debate with a Tellarite.

A cat-like grin spread across Irynya's features as if somehow the insult to her mother, right out of the gate, had the effect of giving a cat a bowl of cream rather than dousing it with cold water. "And your mother clearly valued brawn over any kind of strategic capability. Was that something she lacked herself and so couldn't teach you how to use your size as anything more than a club or did she simply throw up her hands in despair of ever teaching you to do more than beat a person over the head with an insult?"

"Ha!" Grosh grinned toothily. "I'm not surprised that a hairless, tuskless human like you was able to string together so many words... and have not a single insult land." He began to laugh deeply. "Perhaps if your mother focused on making you less of a snivelling wimp, you'd be better at a simple game like Cudgel Ball." His laugh continued, and he bent over from the sensation.

Xex, who had backed up to guard his own post, watched with equal parts curiosity and an intense sort of interest. The ball, he noticed, was still lying in the mud near Irynya's post. Moving awkwardly through the mud, he edged toward Axod as they both watched the exchange. Out of the corner of his mouth he asked, "Do you think we can sneak in and hit the ball while they debate?" This too was equal parts curiosity and intense interest. Xex was beginning to suspect that such shenanigans were the only chance he had at even keeping his own in the game.

Without removing his eyes from the pair throwing insults at each other, Axod shook his head negatively. "I'm not sure I would want to move right now, lest we catch Grosh's eye and he accidentally charges at us." There was a hint of seriousness to his voice, but the glint of his white smile ensured Xex would understand he was making a joke .

Xex didn't look entirely convinced, but he was soon distracted by the next volley of insults.

"Your mother's tusks are blunt and the heads of her children thick," Irynya quipped back, clearly enjoying the exchange. Her eyes twinkled though she had to tilt her head slightly to meet Grosh's eyes giving the impression of a small and normally cuddly animal now standing its ground before a much larger aggressor. "Clearly you did not understand the insult itself, but alas I cannot break it down into smaller words for you." She paused then for only the briefest of moments as though thinking before adding, "I think you may have played this game too frequently... Mud has replaced your brain or you would know why I am the obvious winner here."

Wanting to show the full picture of the sport to his comrade, Grosh growled and put his hands on Iry's shoulders. He didn't yet throw the full force of his weight yet, waiting for her to understand the situation. He took the second to move his feet into a grounding position.

Though Grosh may have expected confusion on Irynya's part regarding what, exactly, would happen if the insults escalated, the smaller Risian was not taken off guard. Instead, her features shifted from playful to determined. Grosh's hesitation to throw her gave her enough time to wrap her hands on his forearms. Shifting her feet in the slippery mud she let herself drop, feet sliding toward the Tellarite even as she became a deadweight clutching his arms. As she had expected, even flat footed, the sudden shift in weight pulled him off center as she slid deftly around him, letting go of his arms before he could grab her and finding herself behind him. Using all of the powerful muscle in her legs she twisted, vaulting herself toward Grosh's back and climbed him until she had her legs locked around his waist and her arms around his neck.

"Yield," she demanded gaily next to his ear.

The flurry of moment was almost too fast for Xex to follow. Almost. As Irynya performed her bait and switch, a delighted grin lit his silvery features. He immediately began forward as stealthily as he could in thigh-deep mud, leaving Axod to either follow or betray him to the other players as he moved for the ball, forgotten in the mud to one side.

Struggling for a moment, the Tellarite tried to free himself from Iry's grip. Then finally, through gritted teeth, Grosh spat,."Yield." He wanted to show that he was a good sport and allow his comrades to experience the game he loved so much. With a smile he retrieved the ball and returned to his spot near his post. He lobbed the ball in the air and hit it with his cudgel sending it towards Xex, not really aiming for the Doctor's post but wanting to get the others involved.

Having only gotten a small fraction of the way to the ball, Xex froze when Grosh easily disengaged himself from Irynya and chucked the ball into the air. When it arced lazily toward his goalpost he hastily backpedaled, and nearly got into position before he slipped in the mud and flailed at the ball. His cudgel connected and while it did succeed in defending his post, it flew wildly toward Irynya again as Xex flopped back into the mud and floundered, trying to right himself.

No longer having the luxury of being underestimated, Irynya dispensed with any impression that she wasn't a worthy contender in the game. She was already well and truly muddy, so it was of little consequence when she dove, cudgel outstretched, toward the ball that had gone so wildly off course. Ball connected with cudgel and with a well aimed twist of her wrist was returned to Xex's corner, though unlike Grosh, Irynya's aim lacked precision and instead of hitting the post the ball flew right past it, a reality she grasped only just as the dive reached it's end and she laid sideways in the mud. A belly-deep laugh emanated her lips and she shimmied until her feet were under her again, rising to show off exactly how much luke-warm mud now coated one side of her body up to and through her hair.

Axod watched as the ball fell near Xex's post and lunged for it. Without a moment of hesitation the Doosodarian tapped the leather ball with his cudgel as if he were putting a golf ball and it made contact with the doctor's post. "Care to argue how that wasn't my goal?" The redheaded Counselor smirked at his silver comrade, challenging him silently, all while hoping they might get the opportunity to take a turn wrestling in the mud.

"Wherezit?" Xex was asking as Irynya's laughter pealed out onto the field. Court? Pit? He was mostly to his feet ineffectually wiping mud from his face when the almost civilized *thud* of the ball hitting his post. He stared for a moment, blinking, as though unable to comprehend what had just happened. Finally, he looked up from the ball to the smirking counselor and without saying a word, launched himself at Axod, aiming to catch him low enough to bear him down into the mud. Apparently, the answer to Ax's question had been a resounding: no.

Still laughing as he hit the mud, Axod quickly wrapped his arms around Xex and spun him, landing atop the silvery man's abdomen. From this vantage point the Doosdarian man tried to take hold of the doctor's wrists to keep him controlled. "Care to yield?" He asked tauntingly, bringing his face within a few centimetres of Xex's face. The Counselor had a smirk plastered across his face.

Xex grunted as Axod landed on his diaphragm, air whooshing unbidden from between his lips. Fighting to draw breath, he was not fast enough to worm his wrists from the Doosodarian's surprisingly firm grip. "Bugger," he muttered, but his mouth had stretched into a mud-spattered grin. Knowing first-hand how exactly this was going to play out-- Axod was extraordinarily good at flipping the script, he had found-- Xex wheezed, "I haven't much of a choice, as usual." He flexed abdomen and arms, testing Axod's grip and finding it unyielding. His grin widened, his gray eyes twinkling as he agreed, "I yield!"

Ax brought himself to his feet, he had a look of superiority having bested the doctor. Still, he extended a hand to help the silver man out of the mud. He'd have to make it up to his roommate later. "You ought to be used to being on your back with me by now." Axod said with a cheeky smile. His teeth shone bright white, even when the rest of him was covered in mud.

"And you ought not to feel quite so smug about getting me there," Xex shot back, as he took Axod's hand and hauled himself to his feet. He was as mud-spattered as the counselor, and seemingly unphased by it. Fishing about in the mud, he came up with first his cudgel, then the ball. Thus armed, he glanced at Grosh for direction. At the Tellarite's encouraging nod, he angled himself toward Grosh and warned good naturedly, "Watch out!" Chucking the ball up, he swung his cudgel at it. For a wonder, it connected, but flew wildly back toward Irynya.

Watching his opponent closely, Grosh squinted his eyes. The mud was thick on his face, but still he watched. A smile formed on the Tellarite's face as Xex wound up to hit the ball. But when the ball was hit and started in the direction of Irynya he couldn't hold his laughter. "What a hit!" He exclaimed, clapping his hands excitedly. "So good to see you can actually hit the ball." He bent over from his laughing.

Iry, had been paying only partial attention -- a bit of a Risian maneuver. There were, she was certain, layers to the banter between the two men and so she gave them a touch of privacy even if it was only by turning her attention inward for a moment and focusing on the feel of the mud. It wasn't her business what might be going on in the slightly charged air on their side of the pit. Of course this worked against her when, once again, the ball spun wildly toward her and she was moving just a tad too slow. Arm extended she dove, once again, for the ball, but this time it tipped off the edge of her cudgel.

A solid thunk made it clear that the tipping had adjusted the ball's direction again and in exactly the wrong direction. "Mr. Xex," Irynya said, shaking her head even as she scrambled back to her feet. "If I didn't know better I'd say you're itching for an argument with me."

If anything, Xex looked more surprised than the Risian when the ball connected. He felt an unexpected surge of pleasure at the sound, knowing his hit-- however inadvertant-- had landed home. Perhaps he really could see the joy in this game, quite apart from rolling about in the mud. In this instance, a surprise attack was out of the question; Irynya was simply too far away. Instead, he decided to try the other tack. Taking a page from Grosh's book, Xex puffed out his chest and began to strut toward Irynya-- if slogging through mug could be counted as strutting. He cleared his throat and sought to project his voice, with indifferent results, "You certainly don't know better, you young pup. I couldn't even fill a thimble with the amount you know, you--" Xex cut off, staring down at his foot which had ceased shuffling forward.

Grunting, he worked to free the appendage which came loose from his boot, of which there was no sign, with an audible squelch. He stumbled, bare foot waving, arms windmilling. When he finally regained his balance again, it was with exaggerated care that he straightened his clothing and, now that he was closer to Irynya, continued in a slightly-less strained voice and incredible aplomb, "You lower decker." It was clear by the tension in his lips that he was hiding a smile at the 'epithet,' his gray eyes sparkling as he waited for her response, sensibly out of easy grabbing range.

It was only through an enormous act of will toward self control that Irynya didn't give up the entire argument in favor of giggling at Xex's lost boot. As it was, a half snort of amusement still escaped her lips. Thankfully, it was a sound she could play off as derision rather than barely contained laughter. At the doctor"s insult, however, she nearly did laugh and, with an effort channeled her amusement in the direction of completely over the top affront.

"Doctor," she exclaimed, one muddied hand coming to rest of her heart, "you wound me. To point out my... my... literal position on the ship... I mean..." Her lips twitched upwards involuntarily. "If I am a lower decker," she said fully aware that she was, "then you are stuffy command officer who is out of touch with the more menial requirements of running a star ship in deep space." It was... only barely... a better insult. And one that, as she said it, she couldn't even begin to back up. From what she knew of the man he was, in fact, extremely empathetic to everyone and infinitely curious about them as well.

Xex was steadily losing the battle over his expression, his lips trembling as he fought to keep them from stretching into a grin. "Out of touch because I can leave such tasks in your capable hands!" he blustered back, his tone insulting even if the words were not. As though only then realizing that he'd managed to compliment rather than insult, he paused, a quizzical look falling over his face. "Er," he backtracked quickly, "That is to say, you wouldn't have the slightest idea what command means, it is so far out of reach of your junior grade mental facilities?" The upswing at the end of the insult stole much of its effect, and Xex eventually gave up the battle with his expression, letting a rueful grin stretch his lips.

At this point Irynya could barely keep a straight face. "Your point could only be even partly true in my capacity as an assistant chief," she sniffed, the tone of voice quavering slightly with the need to giggle. "But of course I'm currently the Acting Chief so..." She trailed off... trying to find a way to punctuate the point that she was, in fact, doing a command level job at that moment... "So... there."

Xex affected a courtly bow, which was much diminished both by the fact that he'd only seen them in holovids and the fact that he was standing knee-deep in mud and splattered liberally with the substance. "I believe I will have to concede this point has been too well defended," he said, shooting a glance at Grosh-- could he do such a thing?

Axod's ginger hair was slick with mud, making him look as though he had dark brown hair. He looked closely as the play had been made, and offered a cheeky smirk to Xex as he conceded the goal to Iry. "Come on! put him in the mud again!!!" He bellowed.

Irynya's head swung towards the counselor and she grinned, but held both hands out to her side as if to imply there was nothing she could do. He had conceded afterall.

"Counselor!" Xex cried in mock affront as he slogged back toward his own goal again, his gait slightly lopsided. He'd have to reclaim his boot when the program ended; he just hoped it wasn't realistic enough to have unknown beasties and other obstacles hidden in the mud. "You sir," he said, waiving his best stern doctor finger at Axod, "cannot simply outsource your wrestling. You'll have to score your own goal." The sly expression on his silvery features seemed alien, out of place on his open features. It seemed that however poorly he was playing, the good doctor was at least keeping score. The grin he shot at Axod was a challenge.

Nodding, Grosh smiled widely as his comrades seemed to be leaning into the game now. "Irynya's ball!" He called out, lifting his hooves from the mud and adjusting his stance. He crouched lower in front of his post, cudgel at the ready. He bobbed eager side to side prepared for the ball to come back into play. The smell of the mud was unmistakeable as it was continually disrupted by gameplay. He wondered how it was that the holodeck managed to replicate that scent, or whether he was imagining it because he missed home.

A chirp erupted in the Holodeck, seemingly from nowhere and yet everywhere. "Scheduled session will end in two minutes." Announced the familiar voice of the Sojourner computer.

Irynya had just managed to retrieve the ball when the two minute warning sounded. She held it aloft nestled in her fingertips as if ready to toss it, but rested her cudgel back on her shoulder and looked to Grosh. "Uh..." she began, not sure if they could accomplish a whole other round of play in the two minute limit. "Should I..."

The Tellarite nodded excitedly. "Whoever's next won't mind waiting a minute if we need it. Shall we say, next point wins." He declared, sounding rather confident in his assertion. He resumed his defensive stance in front of his post, the mud hardening in his hair. His cudgel was tight in his mud soaked hands, ever ready for the swing. "Let's do this!" He bellowed.

Xex crouched for a moment as though limbering his knees, then straightened and tossed his cudgel back and forth between his hands a couple times. "Don't keep us waiting, Chief!" he shouted across the mud pit, his grin a flash of white in his mud-spattered countenance.

With a start at the use of "chief" Irynya grinned, looking from Frav to Xex and back again before tossing the ball up and walloping it with her cudgel... directly at Qo's pole.

The mud coated redhead crouched low and, with his cudgel, swung towards the ball. He missed it and it continued its trajectory, only it didn't hit his post. Instead the heavy leather ball made contact with his abdomen with the full force of Irynya's hit. A shallow grunt escaped his lips as he dropped to his knees. "Oof." His head was hung and the ball splashed into the mud before him.

Xex's face crumped into a grimace of imaginary shared pain, and he breathed out an "oof," of sympathy, watching Axod try to recover.

With everything he could muster, Axod stood, using the cudgel to help him to his feet. He grabbed the ball and tossed it up. He took a powerful swing at it with his cudgel. While the ball started flying towards Xex's post, Ax's club slid from his mud and sweat slick grip and started towards where Iry was.

Watching Ax as he had been, Xex was, for once, well placed to intercept the ball and did so, whacking it with more fervor than aim. Still, it tipped toward Grosh and his post and the doctor's silvery features spit into a grin of triumph-- he hadn't scored a point, but at least he'd hit the ball.

Even as Xex was making contact with the ball, Irynya was dropping. Axod's cudgel, having left his hand in a wild accidental throw, was making its way toward her at an alarming pace. There really wasn't time to think. It was either be hit or move, and in an instinctive bid to avoid the former, Irynya dropped, laying herself out face first in the mud so that the cudgel missed her--only just-- and landed in the mud just a few feet behind her.

"Sorry!" Axod called out, seeing Iry dodge the club without a moment to lose. He watched as the ball was put back into play by Xex and narrowly avoided contact with Grosh's post.

Grosh retrieved the ball and lobbed it into the air. Forgetting that he was playing with novices, he swung his cudgel with all of his might. His three fingered hands expertly gripping the handle. The ball made an unsettling noise as its trajectory changed and it hurtled towards Xex's post. The speed at which the ball was travelling was faster than it had the entire match. With a deafening smack, it made contact with the goalpost and dropped into the mud next to it. "Care to contest my goal, or are you gonna concede the game?" The Tellarite asked snuggly.

The sharp crack as the ball smacked into the goalpost made Xex hunch automatically, as though to hide from some kind of old, powder-propelled projectile weaponsfire. With his shoulders up around his ears, and his back still rounded down, he peered warily at his goalpost, his eyes wide. Mildly surprised to still find it intact after the deafening report, his gaze slowly sought out the unassuming little ball laying quiescent in the mud. Very slowly, his eyes tracked from the ball up to Grosh, then back again. Finally, he straightened, throwing his shoulders back in unconscious imitation of Grosh's earliest posture trying to intimidate Irynya.

"Charge 'im," Iry catcalled at Xex, mirth lacing her words as she struggled back to her feet. Mud now coated the entire front of her including streaks down her face and up into her hairline. She absently swiped at it with her forearm as she watched, curious what the doctor would do.

Shooting a glance as Irynya, he smothered a smile before strutting forward, chest first, clearing his throat ostentatiously. "You call that a strike?" He asked, somehow managing to keep a straight face. "My aged second mother's father could have struck more decisively than that. In fact, his regular flatulence is more conclusive than that sad excuse for a goal!" By now, he was looming up on the Tellarite, a situation somewhat diminished by the fact that Grosh was in fact more substantial than he was himself, even mud-besplattered as he was.

Ensign Frav puffed his chest and moved to meet Xex. He pushed his chest against the doctor's. "I dare you to say that again, you hairless child." He brought his tusked face in close to the silver man's, so close that his tusk brushed the man's cheek. "You couldn't defend your post from a lifeless tribble, let alone my superior prowess on the field." He shook his head and laughed.

"Prowess?" Xex tried for disbelief, but his voice had slid up so high it came out a squeak. "You call that prowess?" He couldn't quite help but cut his eyes briefly to Irynya. "Why, your--" without further warning, and with an inarticulate cry, he dropped into a crouch and launched himself forward at Grosh's knees.

The mud held Grosh's feet in place as Xex caused him to tip backwards. Without being able to help it, he began laughing. He pulled his legs free from the suction of the mud and wrapped them around Xex's waist and moved to push the silver man over using his weight. He continued to laugh.

Grosh's laughter was infectious and despite his concentration on besting the Tellarite, Xex began to grin. It was short lived however-- as Grosh's not insubstantial weight settled about his waist, the doctor began to topple and sink, not entirely under his own power as he had intended.

The Tellarite swiftly found himself atop Xex, trying to pin down the Doctor's arms. "Yield." He said, a muddy smile forming on his face as he fought with his opponents movements.

Grosh was finding it difficult to fully pin the doctor, and despite the disadvantage of being sat upon, Xex was squirming like a landed fish. "You yield!" he shot back, like a toddler in a shouting match.

Ensign Frav shook his head. "I will never!" He continued his moves in an attempt to fully pin Xex in the mud. "I won't ask you again!" He declared. He grunted as he resumed pushing the man's arms down.

"If I yield, will you buy me a drink?" Xex tried this time, sounding a little desperate. Sinking inexorably it the mud, Xex fought to keep his head above the gloopy surface, a proposition that seemed less and less inclined to success the longer Grosh held him prisoner. Still, he had to try to score something in this game for which he is apparently terribly unsuited.

After a short moment of thought, the Tellarite nodded, agreeing to the terms. "You got yourself a deal." His teeth were gritted, waiting for Xex to say the words and end this.

"I yield!" Xex obliged in a ringing voice surprisingly capable of projection despite his position sinking into the mud under the Tellarite's weight. Then, much more meekly, he added, "help me up?"

From where Irynya still stood, slicking mud from her body as she watched the spectacle unfold, her deep belly laughter couldn't be missed. Somehow she hadn't expected the doctor to go with the heckling suggestion she had made, but she was beyond delighted that he had.

"Got room for one more at the bar?" she asked, slogging through the mud to approach the two as Grosh helped Xex to his feet.

Even as she said it the earlier chirp of the ship's computer sounded and the program faded to the tell tale colors of the Holodeck. Though they remained muddy their surroundings, at least, disappeared and the four found themselves standing on solid ground, movement unimpeded by the sucking lukewarm mud of the game.

Axod perked up, "How about two more?" He said with a smile, tossing a muddy arm on Iry's shoulder. "I'm sure we could all use a drink to numb the pain." His smile grew. "But first, maybe a shower?" With his free hand he brushed some dried mud from his torso.

Xex grunted as he was helped up, then found himself standing on solid ground. "Ah!" he crowed, "My boot!" With the knee-deep mud gone, his boot was clear as day, laying in the middle of the floor. He collected it but didn't put it on, instead tucking it under his arm. "Showers first Ax?" Xex asked, sounding admonitory. "One day, we will make sure your priorities are in order."

Falling into step beside Grosh, Xex joined the rest of the players as they made for the holodeck's doors. "What do you guys think? I'm sure David wouldn't begrudge us a little mud in the pub..."

Grosh laughed. "It won't be the first time I've been in there after a workout in the mud pits so...." He shrugged, and smiled slyly. "I say we take our chances."

=/\= A Bit of Recreational Chicanery By =/\=

Lieutenant Xex Wang
Chief Medical Officer

Lieutenant Axod Qo
Ship's Counselor

Lieutenant Junior Grade Irynya
Acting Chief Flight Controller

Ensign Grosh Frav
Engineering Officer