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Episode 02: Cosmic Imperative / Re: Ch 3 : The Meeting of Heroes (or Villains) [ Day 1 | 1500+]
Last post by Brutus -The bridge crew mess hall had been “converted” into a semi-formal affair in the brief time given between the Romulan’s arrival and the ordered meeting between the three groups. There’d been more than a few grumbles of not having enough time to prepare, but none had reached the ears of Commander Stark. While not so fancy as what might’ve been arranged given more time, the mess hall did look much more formal and “fancy” than normal. And now the room was a strange mixture of scents, the table laden with an equally eccentric mixture of food. Basically, all ranking personnel still onboard the ship were required to attend this soiree, the hope being that through a more casual setting, the Romulans and Klingons could see each other as colleagues, at the very least, if only temporary ones.
[ Petty Officer First Class Michael Samuelson ]
“I’m so glad I’m just standing guard over this party,” Samuelson’s stomach heaved as his gaze studied the vast array of alien foods on the table, “I don’t think I could stomach all that. How do you do it?” He looked at the diplomat at his side, eyes wide in wonderment.
“Lots of prep work,” Crewman 3rd Class Jordan Wilde smirked at her friend as they waited for the grand arrival of both Klingons and Romulans to this feast, “I get some hypospray support beforehand for my sense of smell and taste and also to help my stomach bolster itself against anything squirming.” She subtly pointed to the gagh. “And I keep my focus on conversational cues, be they verbal or physical.”
Samuelson shuddered. “Sounds fucking miserable, man. Glad you’re doing it and not me. This alliance would end here and now if someone tried to make me eat half of this shit.”
“Ssh!” The Caitian diplomatic aide hissed at them from her position closer to the main entrance. From the scowl she shot them, it seemed she found their conversation as distasteful as Samuelson found the food.
There was no further preamble before the doors on the left swished open and belched forth a retinue of Klingons while, nearly simultaneously, on the right, the collective of Romulans entered. Samuelson snapped to an even more rigid attention, his mind sharp for details, though his body remained stationary.
[ Lt. Enyd Isolde Madsen ]
While they hadn’t exactly drawn straws in the interim between Donatra’s arrival and this formal gathering, Enyd had discussed among the diplomatic department which individuals felt more comfortable with which groups. L’Nari had not surprised Enyd by preferring the Romulans. At her side was Lourdes, while Wilde remained with Enyd and the Klingons. Giving her aides a quick nod of encouragement, she shifted closer to the Chancellor’s group as the others mirrored the action with the Romulans.
The other senior officers still onboard the ship, those not already in attendance, began to arrive soon after, all just in time for Stark to start the “festivities.”
And start them, she would. The current commanding officer of Theurgy’s primary vector stood in her ready room, working on the final adjustments to her outfit. She had debated with Lt. Madsen about what attire to choose for the occasion. On the one hand, all three parties involved were primarily military. On the other hand, both the Klingon Chancellor and the Romulan Empress were political in nature, and while both would take the field of command, they were also present in a diplomatic position for this joint mission. And while Natalie remembered more than one affair of state between the Allied powers during the Dominion war, all sharply wearing their dress uniforms, the Starfleet crew this time had to serve as a bridge between the two. Adopting a less militaristic but no less formal attire seemed fitting, and in the end, this was the choice Natalie had settled on.
Of course that meant attiring herself in a dress she would likely not wear otherwise. Though it was still a deep, rich command red gown, befitting her department and position, it could hardly be called a uniform. Especially considering it kept her shoulders completely bare. Still, they were making a statement, and she’d live up to it. Adjusting her earrings and settling her hair behind her shoulders, the Commander straightened and exited the ready room into the access hall that looped around Deck One, allowing herself to be escorted by a pair of guards (these in dress uniform as they would be serving a specific function and not merely mingling) and toward the doors to the Bridge Mess.
With a brief pause to acknowledge the officers stationed outside the doors, serving as both protection and greeters, Natalie took one last deep breath and tried to pretend that she did this sort of thing all the time. In her defense, she was getting plenty of experience rubbing shoulders with the powers that be of multiple polities in their little sector of space. The confidence still needed some work, though.
Don’t blow it, her inner voice quipped before she strode into the room like she owned the place, with her head held high, and noted that the Romulan and Klingon delegations had already split off about as she had expected. At least they’d left the food tables in a central location in an effort to force some mingling.
”Excellent,” she began by way of greeting, coming to a stop in the center of the room and slowly turning in place to acknowledge those gathered. ”I See most of us are here already. Delightful. To those that have not yet met me, I am Commander Natalie Stark, first officer and current commanding officer of the USS Theurgy - or at least that part of the vessel assigned to this joint effort. I welcome all of you to my ship, and to this moment. I already gave some speeches to you leaders earlier, so I will, with your esteemed permission, skip that and cut to the chase.
“We are here because we share a common goal and a common purpose - in this case, dinner.” As she had hoped, that actually drew a few laughs from all parties. ”So far be it from me to get in the way of that. Please, help yourselves. Eat, drink, laugh, mingle, and try not to get blood on my carpet.”
In response to Stark’s introduction, Enyd raised the glass of blood wine she’d poured for herself, having already handed a larger cup to the Chancellor. The Chancellor and his aides did likewise, a few even giving Klingon growling grunts of approval. From across the room, Enyd say L’Nari working to get a similar “warm” response from Donatra and her aides but given their nature and the long history of backstabbing between their cultures, Enyd wasn’t surprised the Caitian was having more trouble.
She’d opted to wear a simple cream-colored gown with a red corset , the colors denoting peace and threat of violence at the same time. Most of those in the diplomacy department had similarly chosen white, blue, or cream for their colors of formal attire. It was interesting to Enyd, seeing who had chosen what color or style, as it potentially said much about their viewpoints on this alliance and the future.
OOC: All chapter writers are encouraged to join our new allies, even if they aren’t friends. You may introduce Klingon/Romulan NPCs or work with some of the ones already mentioned. Mingle and maneuver to your heart’s delight.
Please refer to the Cosmic Imperative Calendar (https://uss-theurgy.com/w/index.php?title=Cosmic_Imperative_Calendar) to note when the next major storyline event will be (hint: Day 2 1100hrs) and plan any supplemental threads, be they story prompts or personal, with that in mind.