A Meeting of Heads

Posted on Sat Jan 3rd, 2026 @ 6:37pm by Lieutenant Xex Wang & Lieutenant Commander Victoria Cross & Lieutenant Irynya & Lieutenant Tork & Lieutenant Amarok tr'Ragnar & Lieutenant Bailey Good

Mission: Port of Call
Location: The Orcadian Gem
Timeline: Mission Day 16 at 2050

[The Orcadian Gem]
[MD 16]
[2050hrs]

Pathfinder was still under construction, many sections still uninhabitable or minimally functional. Even the promenade sported a limited selection of shops and eateries to serve the construction crews and the first wave of station personnel already living aboard.

Of course, despite this state of affairs, one of the very first establishments to have opened on Pathfinder was a bar. Where there were humanoids, there were intoxicants, and those who wanted to sell intoxicants to said humanoids. As such, the Orcadian Gem was well-established, and frequented by the entire range of Pathfinder's inhabitants.

And this evening, by the visiting crew of the Sojourner. Xex was no ship's counselor, but she knew after the events with the Kodra-Lisrit and the influx of crew they would be picking up on this stop that the mental and social dynamics on the Sojo were about to shift. She also knew that the various department heads were going to be instrumental in ensuring the shift happened smoothly, rather than with the kind of territoriality or resentment she'd seen on some ships. So, in aid of that smooth transition, she'd invited every department head on the ship to an informal gathering at the Gem, hoping that if they knew each other better, their departments would work together better.

Plus, who didn't love a get-together?

Though it had been her brain child, she found herself hurrying up to the Gem's doors a few minutes late. There seemed to always be something to demand her attention as she attempted to leave sickbay, especially with all of the repair work happening on and around that level. She ran a hand through the fuzz of gray hair that was just starting to make its presence known atop her head. The day when she no longer felt every air circulation draft across the bald skin of her scalp could not come too soon. Just before stepping up to the doors, she smoothed the folds of the long, belted robe she'd chosen to wear. It was a style that felt most comfortable on her too-new feeling body, and she thought the slightly shimmery fabric would complement her skin well, even in the Gem's dim light. She'd been quite proud of herself for choosing anything outside of her usual uniform jacket and trousers.

Finally, she stepped through the doors into the Orcadian Gem.

It was busy as usual, but the cleverly-designed space allowed many small niches for groups to gather, without creating an unintelligible din. There was a central bar where one could watch one's drinks being prepared, and it was as popular as any of the niches, probably owing to gregarious Trill currently mixing one of those drinks and telling an amusing story to her rapt audience as she worked.

Xex scanned the crowd for those who were more timely than her, picking the familiar faces out of the crowd and moving through the bodies toward them.

"It's not so bad, really. There's some days that are warmer than others, but I live on a ship, so I suppose a lot like you we're both in temperature regulated environments. What else do you want to know?" Victoria leaned forward, sipping a drink from a glass of purple alcohol. Ok a screen on her PADD, a Tholian in a nearly white hot chamber spoke in the Tholian language.

"THE HUMAN HOMEWORLD. INHOSPITABLE. IMAGES, AUDIO, SENSORY REPLICATION. NOT PRECISE IN THE ASSEMBLY."

"Blue skies and nitrogen, oxygen atmosphere. Covered with ocean. Three giant land masses and thousands of smaller ones. I'm from one of the smaller ones, Australia, and it's to the southern hemisphere. You see-" An arriving Xex caught Victoria's eye in the crowd, and she quickly sipped her drink and shook her head. "Oh, sorry, Captain, my colleagues are starting to arrive. I'll get with you before we leave, you simply must tell me more about the Assembly, whatever you're allowed to, of course!"

"ACCEPTABLE. DO NOT DECEIVE." The Tholian clicked and chattered, turning in it's chamber to activate a panel on the wall with a crab like appendage.

"Heh, I won't. Talk to you later." She stood, pocketing her PADD, and approached Xex, wearing dark shorts and a SOJO tank top. "G'day, Xex! How are you?" Victoria's tone was warm and familiar.

"'evening," Xex greeted with a warm smile of her own, gaze tracking the Tholian as Victoria moved away from them. "I'm better now I'm off the ship," she answered honestly, then nodded behind Victoria at the Tholian. "New friend?" she asked.

"Oh, it's grand. Literally stopped me on my patrol to stop and chat through it's viewscreen. It's a captain of an explorer vessel from the Assembly, and wanted to know more about humanity, and who am I to say no to an opportunity like that? Because of the environmental needs of their race, they can't exactly walk around with the rest of us, so I imagine the opportunity didn't come around all that often."

Xex would have leapt at such an opportunity, and certainly couldn't fault the Ops Chief for doing the same. Her gaze lingered on the Tholian, only dragged unwillingly back to Victoria when she answered, "Sometimes you get all the luck. I hope you've finished your patrol, then?" she asked, one eyebrow upraised. A mischievous grin tilted the corners of her lips upward as she explained, "It's time for drinks."

"Finished with my patrol, finished with having the Ensigns grav-lift and mark everything for transport. Had a bit of a trouble situation in one of the boxes of organic cellular base, so that was a problem, but she'll be right. Tell you what, you can come meet the Tholian cap'n with me if you like, after we drink with the others? It's name is X'iz.
Voz- Oh, it's Vi'zovik. Swell conversationalist as you've heard."

Xex smirked at the ops chief’s wry remark, but her gray eyes glittered with interest. “Well my conversation may just manage to match the good captain’s after a few drinks, but I shall happily take you up on that,” she agreed, voice light with pleasure at the opportunity.

Dressed for comfort, Amarok stepped into The Orcadian Gem. His off-duty clothes looked almost sleepwear—soft charcoal pants and a long-sleeved soft purple V-neck shirt, the fabric trimmed with uneven blue and teal stitching in a Trill-style pattern that curved across the chest. The sleeves were rolled up to his elbows; he’d forgotten to unroll them after applying his evening skin balm and didn’t want to risk staining the cuffs. It gave him a relaxed look that still felt slightly foreign to him.

He could feel the faint chill in the bar, Amarok couldn't tell if it was just him or not. Scars that crossed his forearms, the nerves didn’t work quite right any more. There was a mixture of old and older that could feel the temperature, but not the brush of air. The older the scar, the deeper it ran, some were misshapen as the layered scars went different directions to the previous ones. Those areas of skin no longer spoke the same language as the rest of him. It reminded him of what he’d lived through—Orion captivity, years without proper medical care—but not with pain. More like an echo of a language he’d stopped using.

He took a stool at the bar and ordered a Trill Surti-nim Tea, a mild spiced blend with a sharp citrus-mint edge. Hannok had once brewed the same drink on the Unstable Unicorn after long cargo runs, and Amarok smiled at the memory as he lifted the cup.

He remembered the freighter’s crew gatherings—the laughter, the smell of frying rations, the ease that came only after hard work. Hannok hadn’t always been there, he was the captain after all, but Amarok had listened to the crew’s stories about their captain: the small acts of patience, the temper that surfaced when people were wronged, the way he led by watching first and speaking second. Listening had taught Amarok far more about the Trill man, strengthening his love for the second man who saved his life, than questions ever would.

Then another memorable time came to the forefront of his thoughts—quiet nights on Nimbus III when Rafe held him close, Paradise City’s crime-ridden streets finally still for a few hours. Those moments were rare then yet a few times a year unexpectedly gifted to them; peace had been something borrowed, not earned. He’d recalled how he’d truly experienced a fleeting peace with Rafe, happiness had come when Amarok reunited with Rafe on Earth. He’d never be able to repay both Hannok and Rafe for their friendship and love, though he’d forever try.

Amarok adjusted his semi-transparent shades as the room lights slightly shifted. The lenses darkened automatically, keeping the glare from stabbing his Reman light-sensitive eyes. His hand brushed the ear cuff Hannok had given him, a small weight and memory holding his ear as an embrace against his skin. The aura of the Gem and the reminders of his journey, Amarok allowed himself to relax fully into the sound of voices and the warmth of the crowd—scars, shadows, and all.

It was interesting to see a wide range of Delta quadrant locals on Pathfinder, they seemed content as they went about their business. Amarok turned around at the bar and had no trouble spotting Doctor Xex, the silver skin was a beacon of soft light in his darkened shades. He saw the 'SOJO' on her tank top and wondered why, the Olympia didn't have such a thing, or maybe he didn't notice it. He'd met her yesterday for his boarding medical and hoped to get to know her better. Furthermore, he was about to call out to her, but a Tholian voice from nearby caught Amarok off guard, and he turned to its source.

Another woman he'd not yet met was speaking to a Tholian on a PADD, Amarok blinked a few times. How peculiar that a Tholian would be interested in casual, as it seemed according to what was being discussed, discourse from a humanoid. The exchange intrigued Amarok, and he approached the woman who also wore the 'SOJO' tank top, but quickly followed her as she went to Doctor Xex. "Hello," he offered his hand, "Lieutenant Amarok tr'Ragnar, Chief Science Officer, USS Sojourner." He nodded to Xex. "Hello again Doctor," his tone filled with joy.

It was a few minutes before the doors to the Orcadian Gem opened again, parting to reveal a Risian, long hair in a ponytail drawn forward over her shoulder. Hazel eyes scanned the space, looking for familiar faces. She wore a gossamer black wrap, secured at her hip to accent and hide her figure in turns. Tan skin seemed darker in the lower lights of the bar, but light where it was revealed against the dark fabric. Her fingers plucked at a bit of the diaphanous cloth as she scanned, the only indication that she might not have felt entirely in her element.

Finally, she spotted a knot of others across the room and began weaving her way toward them. She was still acclimating to the new appearance of the Sojourner's doctor. The effect of Xex's change felt, to her, a bit uncanny. They were clearly the same person. Xex's self was evident no matter what sex their body took on. But the more feminine softer features were still new and Iry had an almost instinctive urge to hug the doctor the way she might have one of her girlfriends. The urge was there, but she repressed it. Instead, stopping beside the woman, she met her eyes with a warm smile. "That's a fabulous color on you," she commented, indicating the shimmery belted robe that the doctor wore. Glancing to Cross and the new science chief who she knew by description, but not from an actual meeting, she inclined her head to them each in turn.

"Sorry I'm late," she offered warmly and then, extending her hand to the man next to Cross, added, "Lieutenant Irynya. Chief Flight Controller."

"And Bailey Good, Lieutenant," came a voice from behind the Flight Controller, "Security Chief." A woman with chopped chin-short hair stood, still in uniform. Much like Irynya, her hair was dark as were her eyes. But they drew much different energies, different silhouettes. Bailey had a hardness to her- not a cruelty, but a sort of... almost punkish stoicism. It might've been the eyeliner, or the lack of evident smile. "Sorry I'm late. We had an arms transfer."

Although 'blush' was not a perfectly accurate description for what happened to Xex's face, her skin did seem to shimmer just a little brighter in the Gem's subdued lighting. The smile she flashed Irynya was warm and genuine. "Thank you, the replicator chose it myself," she said with a self-deprecating wink. "Welcome! Good to see you again, Amarok. How have you been settling in? Well, I presume, since I haven't seen you in a professional capacity again." Her eyes glittered and she grinned, to reinforce the joke. "And Security Chief Good," she turned to the woman, "Congratulations once again on the position. Transfer went well, I trust?" Although it sounded like small talk, Xex's expression was so open and curious, she might have been genuinely interested.

"It went alright." Bailey nodded at the Doctor, mildly distracted with the possibility of drink. "Starfleet's putting us on an enhanced readiness status until they can size up if Subrek was a solo actor, or if this area of space is genuinely more dangerous." She shrugged. "But... shop talk. Hot Rijala, make it smoky." She addressed the entity waiting on her order.

"Settling in okay, Doctor, so far." Amarok gave Xex a smile.

The last one to arrive at the bar, though the Ferengi in question might not agree with such an epithet given his experience traveling with his family's merchant vessel to some far seedier places in the Alpha and Beta Quadrants, was Lieutenant Tork. The diminutive Engineer still had his uniform on, though he looked as if he'd just crawled out of the darkest, most unkempt part of the ship by how covered he was in various substances, especially around his elbows and knees. The Ferengi didn't seem too thrilled to be walking into the place, though he generally didn't look overly happy to be anywhere that wasn't either falling apart or in dire need of being tinkered with. A social gathering was definitely not either of the two, so it made sense... at least in Tork's mind.

Out of the assembled hew-mon and hew-mon adjacent people gathered together, Tork only recognized a few of them, even if he couldn't claim any great kinship with them at the moment. He likely would have forgotten all about this social event if he hadn't received two reminders from the ship's computer while he was basking in the joyous task of putting a ship back together... and tweaking things as he saw fit when the mood struck him.

"Unless I miscounted, everyone else beat me here," Tork announced as if it were something to be proud of.

"Goodness me, new faces. Amarok, Bailey, all of you lot, I'm Victoria Cross, Chief of Operations of the Sojo and very, very happily off duty. I was talking to a Tholian that I'd met earlier today through the comms network, they're a scientist and explorer for the Assembly and I thought it was a rare occasion to chin wag, 'right?" She sipped her drink, "Bailey, I've heard so much about you from Cassian, my former roommate, it's so nice to finally meet you in person," She offered a hand with a warm smile.
"If you like mostly quiet postings, the Sojo's not so bad. We've only faced existential threats a few times since I joined on a little while ago. I'm holding out for Q Continuum nonsense, really." Her smile became a grin.

"I recommend not dealing with the Q, Victoria," Amarok's tone was serious, he used the woman's first name as she did his, but had that hint at attempting to hide a smile. "Nothing good will come of it, that's what I've heard." He let the smile form on his lips then. "And a scientist explorer Tholian, how did you two meet?" Amarok leaned forward with interest.

"Victoria," Xex warned, putting on a mock-scowl, "Must you say the Q-thing out loud? Sometimes I feel like this quadrant is listening." As the last of their number arrived, Xex gave him a smile of welcome as her gaze took in his stained appearance. She tried to keep her smile welcoming, not letting it edge toward a smirk. She was only half-successful; one corner still curved up in amusement, "And you must be Tork. I've heard a lot about you," she said, which was technically true. Her eyes flicked only once to his large ears, and then away, sweeping across the assembled department heads. "Thank you all for joining me! I realized we hadn't all met and if you're anything like me," which many of them patently were not, but she continued regardless, "you needed to get off the ship anyway. Welcome to those of us just joining the mighty Sojo," she nodded to Amarok and Tork and continued, "The drinks here are good, although I wouldn't recommend the Alvanian brandy." Her grimace spoke volumes.

"Thank you," Amarok nodded at the Doctor and smiled.

"Oh, Sheila, it's most definitely listening. Just waiting up in the roof rafters with a mask on half of 'is face waiting for the right moment to sandbag us with more trouble, that's what this Quadrant is doing." She tapped her glass, and grinned, "But you know what? We're tougher than any boogieman out here. We're the Sojourner, we- err, we sojourn, we make ourselves known, and then we're out." She turned to the bartender and returned her empty glass. "I want something new, barkeep. What's something you haven't served much since you got on the station?"

The bartender removed a trapezoidal glass from the bottom of the bartender's shelf and set it down, filled with a green substance.

"What is it?" Victoria asked. The bartender took the bottle, lacking a label, and gave it a once over. Opening the synthetic cork cap at the top, the Bartender gave it a sniff.

"It's green."

Victoria shrugged her shoulders, taking a glass.

Irynya had been uncharacteristically quiet through the exchange of greetings and small talk although she'd kept an attentive expression throughout, eyes bouncing from one speaker to the next. She finally spoke up as the bartender offered Victoria a glass of something bearing a color that rivaled algae or perhaps radioactive isotopes. "A Risian sunrise for me please," she said, jumping onto the bandwagon. She wasn't certain that the Risian liquor would be available on the station, but there was a reasonably close synthetic option and so whatever she got would likely taste at least close to the original.

A nod from the bartender was the only confirmation she got before they wandered down the bar, quickly selecting bottles and a glass. While Irynya waited she turned back to the conversation around her. "How is it?" she asked Cross, curiosity evident in her tone.

Victoria raised a finger to Irynya, before downing a swig of the drink. Her face hardened and tightened, and she quietly set the drink down. "Iry, I think that's either the finest whisky I've ever tried or the smoothest paint thinner they had behind the bar. There's no middle ground." She took another sip from the glass, before turning to the Flight Control head. "I should have gotten the Risian sunrise. Less of a surprise, but you know, what's Starfleet without some risk and danger?"

Despite herself, Irynya snorted, unable to keep the amusement off her face as she watched Cross not only taste, but also emote her reaction to the verdant beverage.

"Osol Twist Tea for me Barkeep," Amarok requested in an old style droll tone, he smiled afterwards.

"A peaceful scientific mission to the Delta Quadrant?" Xex hazarded as an answer to Victoria's rhetorical question, holding up a pair of fingers over Irynya's head, "Make that two sunrises please. For you, Chief? And you, Chief?" she quipped with a grin, nodding to Tork and Good in turn, happy to make a dumb joke out of the fact that here, they were all chiefs.

"I'll take a semi hostile scientific mission in the Delta quadrant," his tone playful and Amarok chuckled as the Bartender gave him his tea. "Thank you," he supplied as he picked up the tea cup and blew on the tea to cool it. A few blows later, he took a few sips. "So good."

"If they have Slug-o-Cola, I'll take one of those," Tork said with a shrug, "Or if they don't carry that, maybe some Quark's Root Beer."

"Heh. How can you drink that shit, Lieutenant." Bailey's nose wrinkled at Tork. "It tastes like the bottom of a really muddy, fishy lake." Her smile widened, "Try Grubfizz." Her nose wrinkled with a bit of a feralness, "Meatier." Bailey raised a brown and smoky looking beverage in something akin to an IPA glass. "Got one, thanks Chief." Her mouth quickly dashed a smirk to continue the joke, and then returned to her stoic Drummeresque facade.

"Was never a fan of Grubfizz," the Ferengi said with a casual shrug, "If I want something meatier, I usually go for some Chew-Goo. Plus, you can't replicate Grubfizz, and I doubt the Federation would ship it in fresh from Ferenginar. Get more mileage out of something you don't need to import out here."

"I have a question for you all," Amarok spoke a little louder, that he could be heard by the rest of the chiefs. "What is your favourite game and why?" He glanced between them all to see which would go first.

Next to Iry the bartender slid three more glasses across the bar. Two were filled the contours of a beautifully curling cocktail glass, their contents layered in the distinctive yellow, orange, pink, and red of the Risian Sunrise. The third was a freshly poured Slug-o-Cola. Irynya's eyes widened as the smell met her nostrils before she turned to see the drinks. Noah was not going to believe this. Or perhaps he would, but she was fairly confident that neither of them had encountered Slug-o-Cola in the wild before and would have happily never done so. The visceral memory of the evening when the two of them had decided to taste the drink... resulting in a not insignificant amount of earlier consumed flavors reappearing when Noah had to make a dash for the bathroom... rolled lazily through her mind and she found herself clamping her jaw and holding her breath as she offered the drink to Tork.

She waited until he took it before saying, "I do not know how you can drink that," while turning back to collect Xex's drink and offering it to the silver skinned woman.

"Easily," Tork said, tipping the glass and imbibing the near gelatinous liquid with great flourish, "Goes down smooth."

When she had her own in hand she considered the new science chief's question. She liked drinking games. Or maybe just social ones. And she didn't think it was necessarily uncommon knowledge. But the cozy warm encounters of her group of friends sitting in a circle while they all kvetched about the unreasonable sting of Tellarite moonshine, felt out of sync with the kind of maturity she was meant to display as a department head. She considered the group and, instead of answering, took a sip of her drink. Perhaps someone else would be willing to go first.

"Don't have a favorite," the Ferengi said as he set his glass down, "But I was the Dabo Champion four years in a row at the Academy. Also took first at three dom-jot tournaments. Didn't even have to cheat the last one I won... kind of a let down, really."

Xex accepted the drink with a smile of thanks and immediately brought it to her lips. Her first sip wasn't in the least tentative, and the way her face lit up afterwards was a sure indication that she had chosen the right person's drink order to copy. Her pleased expression turned on Irynya and she said, "Well now, that is delightful!," as she lifted her drink in a toast. She took another sip, but left off as the Ferengi sipped his gelatinous beverage, fascination taking over the happiness on her face. Perhaps Slug-o-Cola would be her next order.

Briefly shaking her head as if to clear it, she chided Tork, "Anyone can be a Dabo Champion if you rig it right." Xex seemed to be speaking from experience, which clashed somewhat with the doctor's polished exterior. "I prefer something a little more physical. Not so physical as Cudgel Ball," she said with a grimace shot at Irynya, "I am apparently not good at that. But I do love a game of Pri'oh. I am nowhere near the expert native Arcadians are, but the shapes a humanoid body can make... and when you combine them? Exquisite. " She lifted her glass in salute to the form, taking a sip.

Bailey raised a couple of fingers, mouth going around the lip of her drink. She sipped. "Velocity girl here. It's big on Bon Proxima. One of my mothers was on the city team, the Angelou City Lyric."

"And you're settling in alright?" Xex inquired of the two newcomers. "Nothing lacking? Apart from a cleaning cubicle?" she added with an upraised eyebrow at Tork. She tried and failed to keep the smile from her face, her lips twitched as she teased the Ferengi.

"Games, games. Let me think," She took a bottle of Earth-based lager from the bartender and thought got a moment, before leaning back in her chair. "I suppose footy, or volleyball. This may come as a surprise, but I bloody love volleyball. Growing up in Brisb'n and having the beach nearby and an abundance of bumping my head on door frames meant I got pulled into a few games. Football, the Lions, or Arsenal, if you're talking the Premiere. In my school team I got shouldered with being the tender, again for obvious reasons. Bailey, what's Velocity? And what's Pri'oh? I shouldn't ask about Dabo. I .. " She took a drink from her lager.

Bailey raised an eyebrow, "The holos I have up in my room. That's Velocity. Those're the Lyric, playing a match on Mars." She sipped her drink again. "Think handball or racquetball but with phasers."

"..I am terrible at Dabo and gambling. I can have a stone demeanor at work but with the damn Dabo wheel and all the excitement I get caught up and suddenly I'm out of my currency allotment."

"You mean a shower?" Tork said, looking to Xex, "I have one. Made it myself the first night I was aboard. Problem with having super sensitive hearing around sonic showers is that you never want to use the sonic shower. But I also understand that hygiene isn't exactly optional when you live on a starship that isn't crammed full of other Ferengi who are equally nonplussed about smells. Doesn't use much more power than your standard light fixture, and the net positive return on matter for the replicator system more than pays for itself... even when you set it to Ferenginar Rain Shower."

This was great, it made Amarok smile as he listened to his fellow chiefs talk about their favourite activities. "I do enjoy swimming, Kal-toh, board games, a quite active game named Twister," a seductive smirk formed on the Science Chief's lips as he described the old Earth body flexibility game, "I do practice a few martial arts forms, so sparring is fun. Of course Velocity is a regular for me."

After a brief pause. "Looks like we need to do a Velocity tournament some time." Amarok smirked, "or maybe a Games Olympics," he put his finger tips to his chin in a thoughtful pose. "Question is how do we do teams, departments or lottery or even sign ups maybe." It wasn't to anyone in particular, he picked up his tea and sipped several mouth fulls while he considered the idea.

By this point Iry's drink was already half empty. She'd opted for sipping for the majority of the conversation. Finally, though, she felt like she ought to contribute. Everyone was going to lean toward the sports they liked then she could start there at least. "I dance," she offered, speaking up. "I know that's not really a game, but it's my main choice for any kind of organized athletics." She frowned down at her glass a moment, considering. "And I've organized the occasional Noreabang. I don't usually bother with the competitive side of it, though. It's more just fun to get everyone involved."

She sipped her drink again, wondering where this conversation was headed. She wasn't sure how she felt about organized sports. Some of the crew would definitely enjoy something like that. Bryad came to mind. A tournament would definitely stoke his ego. But others... she could think of a few who might prefer to abstain.

"Singing, and dancing," Amarok gave Irynya his most devilish smirk.

Iry met the smirk with raised eyebrows and lips pressed together as if her entire face was saying Yup. She couldn't quite decide if the scientist was making fun, making a pass, or simply applying deeper implications to the two. Of the many races she'd encountered Remans had not been among them and she found it hard to be sure of the man's body language.

"Pri'oh isn't so different from Twister," Xex told Victoria. "Contortion, except in a more... artistic way. I would say it's yoga meets the competitiveness of Twister, with a touch of the discipline of Tai-chi." Though she might usually have expanded on the benefits of the sport, Xex couldn't help but smirk at Tork's description of his shower upgrades. Clearing her throat, she leaned a little closer and jibed, "Understanding and doing seem to be two different things then, hm?" Her gray eyebrows raised in a teasing challenge; for all the Ferengi's upgrades, he still hadn't seen fit to use them before coming to the gathering he'd forgotten about.

Smirking, she took a sip of her drink and though it was far from her first taste, it seemed to bring her back to the experience, her expression brightening with as much delight at his last sip as her first. Xex raised her glass toward Irynya, "Excellent choice, chief."

This, Irynya could get behind. She inclined her head to Xex and grinned. "Need another? I'm going to order a second round."

Tork glanced over at Xex, "You're lucky I remembered you setting this little gathering up in the first place. I was lobes deep in the belly of the ship trying to make sure that we could depart on time... if I had gone to my quarters for a shower, I probably wouldn't have shown up at all, I'd have crashed on my bunk and forgotten all about it. And anyway, you can't tell me you've never been so absorbed in doing your job that you didn't leave covered in... something... and not even noticed or cared that you were. I've known one too many people in the medical branch to believe you haven't."

Xex stepped slightly away from the high table and executed a genuflection that was half-curtsey, half-bow. "Then it seems I should be thanking you for gracing us with your presence," she said, her irony more teasing than pointed. The flash of a smile that accompanied the jibe helped soften it further. She lifted her glass in a salute and took another sip, "And you're not wrong, although I would hope one could at least rid oneself of the most obvious viscera before being seen in polite company."

Victoria gazed out into the void for a moment and sipped her drink, before turning to Tork, "I've been engrossed in my work a lot lately. I needed this. I needed a breather. Being the chief of operations is difficult. Efficiency, communication, sensors, all these things that I have oversight over, and making sure that the ship is operating smoothly. Staring at LCARS all day. The holodeck saves my life." She finished off her drink, and stood up, cracking her shoulders and back. "Right. Mates. What would be the most shocking thing the Sojourner runs into in the Delta? I think it would be something that doesn't want to kill us. That would be utterly bizarre and confounding on a scientific, religious, and metascientific level. Truly." She sat down on the stool again, taking a wide step over it and dropping down, before adjusting the straps to her top.

"Bartender, replicate me a pina colada."

"Someone wants to get caught in the rain," Bailey interjected.

This earned her a quizzical look from Xex.

"Nothing sinister, Irynya," Amarok told the Chief Flight Control Officer, "just singing and dancing I assure you," he turned to Victoria and grinned, after a brief genuine smile at Irynya. "While not shocking per say Miss Cross," he wanted to show respect for an officer of higher rank to him but if she told him to address her by first name, he'd do so. "I'd like to encounter the many cozmozoans that Voyager did and others." Amarok sipped at his Tea and somewhat gazing off imagining the large spaceborne entities.

Although the Reman's expression had changed Irynya still felt as if she had missed some key detail in the exchange. She offered him a tentative smile in reply before turning to the bartender and ordering two more Risian Sunrises, not bothering to see if Xex actually wanted one. She would be happy to drink the third if their host declined. "I'm with Victoria," Irynya said when she turned back around. Her expression, usually very open, had shuttered somewhat as memories of their encounter with Subrek seemed to skuttle through her brain. "Or maybe more something that we figure out how to neutralize before it deliberately or accidentally tries to kill us... or you know... impregnate us or something..." The misadventure she and Noah had undertaken while trying to find Kaldri within the Twinfire Nebula floated to the top of her mind. She tried not to play out what, exactly, would have happened had they not realized her mistake when they did.

Tork grunted in thought before answering, "Don't really care what we find out here as long as they have some parts I can nab at a decent price to add to my collection. Wouldn't hate finding enough scrap to dabble in a slipstream device or two. I heard they were popular on this side of the galaxy."

Victoria held her pina colada in her fingers and puffed her cheeks, before taking a sip. She thought on what Irynya had said for a moment, before opening her mouth to speak. She said nothing, drinking another sip of alcohol, before finding her words. "Right. See, that's awful. I want to shake hands with something new, meet new cultures, not walk away the mother of a bouncing baby salt vampire or extrasolar parasite, or dead, or somehow something worse than death, which exists." She shuddered, shaking her shoulders with a chill that ran down her back. "Trapped forever in subspace, transformed into something that's aware but unable to interact with the outside world, or hey, you're a high energy being now, or .." She shook her head.

"It's a bloody lot."

Xex's eyes had gone round as Victoria's examples spiraled into the disturbingly specific. "It is," she agreed, accepting the next Risian sunrise from Irynya with a smile of thanks, "and may I just take this moment to remind everyone of the excellence of our ship's counselor?"

Deciding a change of tack was in order, the doctor cleared her throat and lifted her renewed drink, casting a quick glance around to make sure the rest of the company was likewise endowed. "I would like to propose a toast: to the Chiefs of the best damn ship in the Delta Qudrant. May our next adventures be full of new acquisitions," she nodded to Tork, "Peaceful discoveries," a tip of her head to Amarok, "And without pregnancy," a nod to Irynya, "Parasites," her glass tipped toward Victoria, "or kidnappings," she finished with a glance a Bailey.

Irynya chuckled, raising her glass in agreement. "And may Counselor Qo's case load be blissfully low," she added with a grin before tipping her glass back and drinking deeply.

Bailey raised her glass to that.

Victoria raised her glass. "To the Sojourner! Never has a scrappier ship has left drydock!"

Glasses clinked and the department heads of the USS Sojourner drank to their health, the Sojourner’s health, and many more wishes besides.

A post by:

Lieutenant Commander Victoria Cross
Chief of Operations

Lieutenant Tork
Chief Engineer

Lieutenant Amarok tr’Ragnar
Chief or Science

Lieutenant Bailey Good
Chief Security Officer

Lieutenant Irynya
Chief Flight Controller

Lieutenant Xex Wang
Chief Medical Officer