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EPIL: S [D07|0101] This Is A Place For The Broken Hearted

[ Lt Cmdr Thomas Ravon | Below Decks Lounge | Deck 28 | USS Theurgy ] @Numen 

Each step Thomas took seemed to resound in the corridor as he made his way to the lounge where he had asked his old time friend Bila Izar to meet him. Each step seemed to take an eternity before his foot hit the ground, his mind a flurry of thoughts, emotions and just an utter mess. It seemed to be a rerun of how he had felt aboard the Thunderchild many years ago. When he had learned about Zephyr engagement. When he read through their adventures and time together.

Finally he made it to the lounge as the doors slid open. His eyes looked around inside the area to look for his scaly hybrid friend. It wasn't that hard to spot the scientist as people were already gawking at him as he was faceplanted into one of the couches. Ravon's facial features changed slightly, a frown rising to his brows before he walked over to the man.

If Bila was good at something it was to change the pilot's mind. Even by taking this rather unnatural and perhaps even painful position, he had effectively caused for his mind to digress from Zephyr for just a little while. Coming to a stop at the feet of Bila he scoffed "Lieutenant. What exactly are you doing here?" he asked on a tone that would go along the lines of a senior officer reprimanding a junior officer. In case Bila wouldn't have recognized his voice, he would probably figure out when the pilot grabbed the scientist by his ankle. He lifted him up, arching his back in an even more unnatural position, Bila wasn't exactly a lightweight, yet it was good exercise. He'd stop when some sort of reaction was issued by the Bajcardie.

"What happened to you?" he asked with a worried look on his face.

Re: EPIL: S [D07|0101] This Is A Place For The Broken Hearted

Reply #1 –
[ Lt. JG Izar Bila | Below Decks Lounge | Deck 28 | USS Theurgy]
[Show/Hide]

@Nolan

Bila wanted to sleep. He didn't know for how long, but he wanted to sleep. A week would be nice. Better yet, a whole year. But slumber was elusive for him. Every time he closed his eyes, images of the Alligeant flooded his mind. Or from the Medical lab. Or... from later.  The faces of the wounded haunted him. The faces of the dead, even more so. The ones he hadn't been able to save.  A part of him deeply admired doctors and nurses. More than ever. How these men and women faced death every day, sometimes without being able to do anything to stop it, was admirable. And, for him, impossible. How did they survive without losing their minds? Without pain and despair seizing on their souls and never leaving them again? No, he didn't know how they made it, but he wasn't able to cope with it. Or not so soon. Not with the events so fresh in his memory.

So he had chosen the second best option in his repertoire. He had crawled like the cowardly bastard he was to the nearest lounge. He had requested the strongest thing he could recall to one of the holographic waiters, the only one he could remember its common name and not only its chemical formulae. And he had begun to get methodically drunk. Which was one of the worst options one could choose after gorging himself on painkillers... or after a concussion. But Bila never did anything half way, even less if there was alcohol involved. So if he could only get some rest thanks to an ethylic coma, then so be it.

However, with the bottle of kanar already halfway through and his stomach twisting through the gagging, he had not managed to get either sleep or unconsciousness to carry him away. Neither did drunkenness. He was still too sober, too overwhelmed, too sore and too awake. And above all, too tired.


So, with a frustrated grunt, he had dropped himself with his face ahead onto one of the couches, ignoring the startled glances of the rest of the crew who, like him, were trying to find answers or peace at the bottom of their glasses. He did not mind what others were thinking. He was desperate.

After a while, he began to find the position comfortable. Yeah, his face was incrusted against the cushion, but it wasn't that bad. And well, maybe his legs bent a little painfully against the armchair and his feet were numbing. But he was more or less comfortable.  At least it was an improvement.  Then, when he could almost swear he could fall asleep, someone stepped in and started scolding him.

Bila almost came out of his scaly skin. Any snippet of sleep or drunkenness that might have grown into him suddenly disappeared when that officer, whoever he was, grabbed him by the ankle and began to raise him, like a banner. The hybrid stroked in the air uselessly, trying to cling to the cushions to stay in his place. Upside down, he could recognize his 'attacker'. Ravon.

A succession of relief and confusion passed through his grey face. "Ey Birdbrain" greeted with a forced smile, looking at his friend almost face down. From that position, his worried expression was almost comical. But Bila didn't really feel like laughing. His best friend asked a question and the hybrid looked at him for a long time, blinking, trying to summarize EVERYTHING that had happened in a few sentences.

"What happened to me?" he chuckled. "Where I begin... let me think... Well, you know, maybe... just maybe... if you let me regain verticality I could explain it to you a little better." he teased.

It was an excuse. And he knew it. But there was something on Ravon's face that told him that he wasn't the only one who had had a terrible day.

Re: EPIL: S [D07|0101] This Is A Place For The Broken Hearted

Reply #2 –
[ Lt Cmdr Thomas Ravon | Below Decks Lounge | Deck 28 | USS Theurgy ] @Numen 

A forced smile followed up by his least favorite nickname was all it needed from the scaly hybrid he was holding up to make a slight smile appear on Thom's face. The scientist had fought to remain on the couch, in whatever awkward position he had found himself comfortable in. The quick quirky responses didn't flow out of Bila as hey used to, perhaps it was because of his inverted state, too much blood rushing into his head and brain. Or perhaps he was just having an equally bad day as himself.

The Bajcardie requested to be placed back down and Thomas complied. Though he'd normally just let go and see how Bila would fall, he eased him down as he didn't want to hurt his scaly friend again. Taking a seat besides him in the couch he smiled faintly "I'm all ears." The pilot had dropped down like a rock and he took an extra glass to fill it with the remnants of the Kanar. He looked at Bila and narrowed his eyes at him as he listened.

Ravon was still shaken by the presence of Zephyr and he didn't want to just blurt it out to his best friend. As Bila talked, it felt like the problems Thomas had were futile and insignificant. He had taken a single sip from the Kanar, letting the rest roll around in his glass as he stared at the content in his glass. He nodded and kept listening to Bila as he chattered away. He could feel the pain and anguish in his words as he summarized his day in hell.

Re: EPIL: S [D07|0101] This Is A Place For The Broken Hearted

Reply #3 –
[ Lt. JG Izar Bila | Below Decks Lounge | Deck 28 | USS Theurgy]
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@Nolan

For the first few minutes, Bila only ranted about the battle, and about the Borg, and his concussion that had had him speaking in kardasi afterwards. It was a pose, a way of revolving around the subject that really was consuming him and that he didn't dare approach directly. Thomas sat next to him, glass in hand, and let him spit out all his verbiage, nodding when he should and generally being a good wall on which to reflect his thoughts.  They knew each other very well. Bila needed time to reach his real concerns. Time and many words.  When he finally fell silent, he stared at his own hands for several minutes, in silence, trying to figure out where he actually meant to say.

"Look Tom, I don't know how you managed to survive all this... this for so long," he said, pointing vaguely around himself, not specifying whether he was referring to the starship or to the overall situation. "But I'm not made for this, I'm a man of peace. I'm a researcher, a scientist, not a soldier." Bila sighed, rolled the kanar in his glass, rotated it, and finally gave it a long swig that drained it to the dregs.

"Ku, I'm not even a doctor, I don't deal with death day in and day out. I've had enough death before joining Starfleet to fill three lives, you know that better than anyone else," he muttered with a sigh, as he refilled the pilot's glass and then poured what was left of the bottle into his own one. Those last deciliters of kanar were especially dense, almost a syrup, and they crawled painfully slowly around the neck of the bottle before dropping into the glass with a loud 'plop'. The half-cardassian raised the glass, so that the light from the ceiling passed through the dense liquor, giving it a golden glow. Almost as if it were a gem, or something valuable and rare. One of the corners of his mouth curved slightly at the thought of it, but instead of his usual mischivieous expression it was an almost sorrowful grimace. Izar lowered the glass and the colour disappeared completely, and the liquid returned to its usual blackish, oily appearance.

"Today I killed a man, Tom," he confessed after a long swallow. He didn't look at his friend as he said it, instead his eyes remained fixed on the dark liquid in his glass. "I' ve killed a man whom I appreciated, a  Cayuga fellow. I inflicted on him an excruciating and needlessly painful death because I thought I could save him. I thought... I thought I would make it." Bila rarely showed guilt for his own wrongdoing. And even less so out loud. There was always a motive, a cause for what he did what he did, no matter how twisted it might be.  Yet at that moment his voice was burdened with guilt. "I don't even know if I tried because there was a chance to save him or because my arrogance didn't let me see that there was nothing to do. That I should let him go, as he chose." Bila took a deep breath as he leaned forward to leave his empty glass on the low table. He deposited it carefully, aligning it with the empty bottle and the wet marks the bowls had left on the surface.

He wasn't really sure about anything at all. He wasn't sure if he had done the right thing. Had he betrayed the values of his religion, what he believed and what he had sworn by... nothing? The hybrid had never held a weapon. Not since he had memory. He hadn't even gone through the Academy's marksmanship training, as he had chosen to be a conscientious objector. But he had not needed a weapon to kill that day. Was he becoming the worst cliché of a Cardassian? He hoped otherwise.

Bila rubbed his eyes with one hand and shook his head. "You know? It doesn't really matter any more. I think this is material for the shrink or for another kanar bottle, not for your bird brain," he teased throwing one of the cushions at Ravon. As he was doing so, one of the holographic waitresses approached to remove the empty bottle and glasses. The holographic brunette gave them a warm smile, as if she was really aware that both men needed any hint of kindness they could receive. [/i]"Would the gentlemen have another round?"[/i] she solicitously asked.

"Yes please, the same thing for me, and two glasses, unless you want something else, Tom." Once the human exposed his preference, Xenia bowed slightly and headed to the bar.

"And why the hell are you here? Tell me," the chemist asked when the hologram was lost herself among the lounge tables. "Shouldn't you be celebrating that you're still the Fighter Leader and you could keep rubbing elbows with the brass? High ranked officers don't have any private and secret bar just for yourselves?" he joked looking at Thomas, at last, with his usual mischiveous expression. "No, wait, are you going to tell me that you like to get mixed up with the plebs?... or did you miss just me?" he asked shamelessly.  He didn't feel much better. Not by a long shot. But talking to Ravon had something cathartic. Maybe it was those puppy dog eyes. Or the ease with which he fell into poking him. But, yeah, he felt better. A tad. But better. Just enough to actually asked himself why Ravon was there. And why he had that pained expression on his face. And why he had swallowed the kanar without hesitation, which he would only do if there was a trouble brewing in that hard brain of his.

OOC:
Kardasi
ku → shit

Re: EPIL: S [D07|0101] This Is A Place For The Broken Hearted

Reply #4 –
[ Lt Cmdr Thomas Ravon | Below Decks Lounge | Deck 28 | USS Theurgy ] @Numen 

Ravon looked at his scaly friend as he began to spill his guts. Talking about how he had no clue how the pilot had survived all of this for so long and how his job didn't even lean close to any medical proficiency. If anything, Bila was indeed a man of peace and research. The pilot chuckled lightly yet remained a wall to complain to and unload at as he looked weary at his friend. He figured the scientist was enlisted with his new invention of ORE to counteract the Borg assimilation that was undoubtedly inflicted to some of the crew. He also figured that not all of this would go adamantly perfect.

The confession of him killing a man made the brows of the pilot furrow. He shifted in his seat as he put his glass aside and looked into Bila's eyes. Taking a life always took a toll, be it behind a fighter stick or up close an personal. The latter obviously having a larger impact on life then the other. Izar explained and Thom nodded as he studied the features of the Bajcardie as good as he could. Ravon weighed his words as he would speak to Izar as he spoke of his own arrogance, a trait that was rather common to his people if Thomas would have to be objective about it. A comment about that wouldn't help though.

"Izar... The fact that you did all you could in order to save the man doesn't mean you killed him. Look at it the other way. Would you be able to live with yourself, if you've had the faintest idea that something you could do could possibly make him better?" he asked the scientist "Or would it gnaw away at you just like you feel like it's eating you up on the inside like now?" he continued "From what I hear, I doubt there was any correct decision to make. It was a lose lose situation. In the end you have to ask yourself... Which decision would be the one with which you can continue living? Although I figure some of your treatments were successful?" Thomas smiled, trying to cheer him up.

As Izar came to the conclusion that this was probably stuff for a shrink, Thom laughed and shook his head "Sure, you a man of science at a shrink. I wonder how that'll work out." he mocked the Bajcardie. Xenia the holographic waitress came by and as she asked for their order Thomas switched up to a non alcoholic drink, which was presumably odd for someone who knew him like Izar.

Eventually the old friend from the Thunderchild relapsed into his playful and mischievous banter. Ravon shot him a look "The senior staff private bar is becoming more enticing by the minute the longer you keep yapping like that." he shot back to Izar before he shook his head. Was he really supposed to be celebrating? As Izar summed it up, it sounded pretty logical. Thomas seemed to phase out for a second as his mind brought him elsewhere. It didn't take long, maybe a second or three before he snapped out of it and looked at Izar. He clenched his jaws together for a second before simply announcing it "Zephyr is here. On the ship.. I ran into her." he said softly, almost in a whisper yet loud enough for Izar to hear.

Re: EPIL: S [D07|0101] This Is A Place For The Broken Hearted

Reply #5 –
[ Lt. JG Izar Bila | Below Decks Lounge | Deck 28 | USS Theurgy]
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@Nolan

Bila listened to his friend's thoughts in a startled silence. So shocked that he even searched for a moment for the glass the waitress had taken, his hand hovering on the low table unsuccessfully. Finally, he cleared his throat, looking directly into the human's pale eyes. " Somehow... you're right. I have saved people. I saved more than I had expected," he confirmed. In his voice it was evident that he was perplexed by the depth of Ravon's reflections. "Hey Tom, when did you become this wise? You're not a shape-shifter or something like that that has replaced my friend, are you?" he joked, trying to lighten the conversation. But the pilot's words still resonated in his mind. He was right, there was no simple choice. And if he hadn't tried everything in his hands, if he hadn't put until his last nerve in trying to help the other hybrid, this failure would been corroding his guts until the end of his days. Despite this, the way Ekon had perished... just remembering it made him tremble. It was a death he wouldn't have desired even for his worst enemy. Just remembering it caused a chill to run through his body again, as if the room had dropped its temperature suddenly.

Luckily, Ravon no longer insisted on the subject, and joked about the dire consequences of bringing the bajcardie and a psychiatrist together in the same room. "I'm a laboratory accident away from becoming a mad scientist, remember?" he warned in a playful tone. "So I try to keep this brain of mine under control... more or less" He assured as he tapped his temple with the index finger of his right hand. Izar was about to mention that he had visited one of the ship's counselors and that maybe he needed to make another appointment with her soon, but the holographic waitress interrupted them. Bila postponed the matter to request a new round of drinks. He expected, as was his custom, that Ravon would accompany him on his alcoholic journey to the bottom of the kanar bottle. But the pilot surprised him again, requesting a non-alcoholic drink. "Hold on" he said, leaning forward and holding the pilot by his shoulders. "Seriously, who are you and what you' ve done with my friend" he claimed with a threatening tone and an unusually severe expression. However, the pantomime was short-lived and soon a small smirk blossomed on his lips. Despite... everything that had happened, of all the misfortunes of the day, it felt good to have a glimpse of their Thunderchild nights. It gave him a sense of normalcy that he really needed. Razor followed up with the banter and Bila just chuckled softly and shook his head. Meanwhile he served himself another kanar shot. In spite of himself, one of the corners of his mouth curved slightly upward. He had really missed his friend.

Bila sipped the dark liquid in one go, savoring the sweet aftertaste after the first oily gulp. Kanar was, of certainly, an acquired taste, but the hybrid had come to appreciate liquor over the years. As he poured himself a second glass, he noticed that Thomas remained unusually silent. When he looked at him he realized that he was staring blankly, with his own glass held idly in his hand. Observing something that only he could see. "Tom?" Bila called, trying to get his attention back.

Then Ravon dropped the bomb.

"WHAAAT?!?!?!?!!" Bila asked, almost shouting in surprise. A couple of bar patrons turned towards where the two men sat, surprised by this unusual pitch. Bila shut his mouth and leaned towards Ravon with a conspiratorial attitude. "How is that that ' you ran into her'?.... has she always been on this ship and you hadn't heard about her? The crew have rescued her from some other starship or.... by the Prophets, birdbrain don't tell me just half of the story..."

Re: EPIL: S [D07|0101] This Is A Place For The Broken Hearted

Reply #6 –
[ Lt Cmdr Thomas Ravon | Below Decks Lounge | Deck 28 | USS Theurgy ] @Numen

"Wise? Ha..." Thom smirked "You sure you're not a shapeshifter? Calling a Birdbrain a wise man?"he teased his friend "It's just a thing I picked up while surviving here. You don't think I feel bad or wrecked whenever I need to kill a Federation pilot to protect my own crew or family?" he smiled bitterly before he shook his head as he didn't want to open up that particular can of worms.

Their banter kept up and Thomas had punched the Bajcardie on his arm for questioning his choice of drinks "Who knows, I might be a parasitical overlord after all?" he joked before he looked around. The joke might not be well taken by others around them, though nobody had seemed to notice it. Thus the two kept bantering about little things and shenanigans. It felt good to have a change of pace, to have a conversation with a friend that didn't entirely destroy his mood or had to keep his head thinking about second agendas. Bila was just plain fun, without any consequences.

The Bajcardie's response to him mentioning that Zephyr was aboard the ship made him punch Izar again on the same arm, this time harder as he hushed him down "Djeez, tone it down scaley!" he toyed with him, yet with some seriousness in his voice. The flurry of questions followed and he shook his head "She replied to one of my messages... One of the last messages I sent her while we were aboard Thunderchild." Ravon explained "It didn't really make sense until our tactical officer did remind me that we were in a total comm black out. So she couldn't be sending it to me from anywhere else besides the ship. This was less than a day ago... Right after the battle against the Borg." he took a sip from his drink "So I went looking for her... Searched everywhere and found her eventually."

The pilot paused again there as his eyes became more dead once more. His grip around the glass he was holding becoming tighter "So, like a full birdbrain, I thought it to be a good time to open up about those feelings I felt for her." he smiled faintly "And well.. It all went to shit after that..." he whispered as he raised his hand, almost seemingly toasting about it "This fucking galaxy just isn't for us I think. A bug ruined the whole moment, of all the fucking things on this ship! A FUCKING BUG!" Thom grunted as the anger finally poured through. The glass he was holding beginning to show cracks, the core strength of it failing at the grasp of the pilot before eventually it shattered in his hand. Pieces of glass slicing into his skin and muscles as he looked down at his hand as the drink now mixed with blood and began to seep down his arm and onto the table.

Re: EPIL: S [D07|0101] This Is A Place For The Broken Hearted

Reply #7 –
[ Lt. JG Izar Bila | Below Decks Lounge | Deck 28 | USS Theurgy]
[Show/Hide]

@Nolan

Izar rubbed his sore arm while Ravon elaborated on his explanation of how he had reencountered with Zephyr. That expression of... friendship gave him mixed feelings. It was part of the pilot's idiosyncrasy. Thomas Ravon was a good-hearted bully after all.  And it also indicated that, somehow, the pilot was in a good mood. But for the Prophets, it hurt. Perhaps he should remind him that his bones had a consistency similar to wet paper. Hopefully Tom would have scratched his knuckles with the scale ridge of his forearm, he thought mischievously.

"Hold on" hissed Bila halfway through the explanation. "It didn't even surprise you that she answered you again after... How long? Years?... And did you forget that you were in a total comm black out? Honestly birdbrain, I don't know if you're dumber than I remembered or if that girl consumes the little brains you have." he joked, but taking good care to get away from the pilot and grab a cushion as a shield. Just in case another flying fist appeared in his direction. "That or I should feel offended that you thought you could communicate with the outside world and STILL you didn't think about contacting me," he added dramatically.

However, the moment of laughter and jokes suddenly faded away and Ravon's expression changed one more time. Bila observed him as he was pouring another glass of kanar but, with a second thought, he put the bottle and cup aside, leaving them in a precarious balance on the edge of the table. The chemist was more than familiar with his friend's expression. Those eyes without sparkle, as if life had no sense anymore. So he approached his friend again and, awkwardly, patted his shoulder to encourage him to keep talking. And Ravon spoke. Of course, the affair had not gone as he had hoped. Not like the tales about knights and princesses that the half-cardassian would have expected, with the girl throwing herself into his friend's arms at his declaration of love. It was clear that, like so many times, real life was nothing like holonovels.  And his friend's frustration at that fact became evident when his fingers clasped tightly over the glass, shattering it.

Bila watched him for a moment, the concern drawn in his grayish features. "You know Ravon? If I were someone who had been lost out there for so long and suddenly a humongous pilot  threw his feelings just at my face it would be... I don't know... too much, don't you think?" reasoned the chemist, with a tense smile on his face. Then he gestured to the attention of the holographic waitress and subtly pointed to the bleeding hand of his friend. As the woman headed to the back of the bar in search of something to stop the hemorrhage, Bila kept speaking in a quiet tone. "You know, maybe... maybe that bug is a sign from the Prophets. You need to take it easy, you know? Use those seductive skills of yours. Invite her to dinner, talk to her. Let her... regain confidence a little bit, right? Because, bug aside... she didn't run away scared or slap you or anything like that, did she?... " he said, with an increasingly confident voice. In those moments Xenia appeared next to them with a skin regenerator in hand and huddled next to Ravon to take care of his wound. "Maybe she was as shocked as you were to have found you again, so much so that it wasn't the time to... go deeper into... feelings and that," he added, waving his hands. If there was anyone inexperienced in relationship management in the lounge, it was the half-cardassian. But he was trying to give the best advice he could. "So conquer her, seduce her and, then... "Bila only smiled mischievously, letting Ravon imagine the end.

Re: EPIL: S [D07|0101] This Is A Place For The Broken Hearted

Reply #8 –
[ Lt Cmdr Thomas Ravon | Below Decks Lounge | Deck 28 | USS Theurgy ] @Numen 

Bila had interrupted Thom to ask him why any alarm bells didn't go off when she eventually had contacted him again. It was true that it had been years since they last spoke and that it wasn't even under the best of circumstances. He teased him, like only he would allow to be teased by from a good friend. He knew him too well as he used a cushion to shield the blow. The punch dealt out would've probably hurt a whole lot more if it wasn't buffered "I didn't need to contact you, you dragged your scaly ass out of a shuttle." he shot him as a remark.

The teasing and fun though seemed to seep out of the conversation rather quickly after that point. The pain not even fully registering with the pilot as he simply relaxed his hand and looked down at the blood dripping onto the lounge's floor. Bila spoke once more, as if he was an expert upon the matter. As he described the situation, Thomas couldn't help but think if he was at fault here. Did he overwhelm poor Zephyr with just all of this? Did he bombard her with too much and blamed the universe for the negative outcome? The Bajcardie kept talking while Xenia arrived by his side, opening his fingers and removing the glass as quickly ass possible before using the dermal to heal up his wounds.

Everything he said, the entire thing. He couldn't really believe he actually had to admit to it, but it sounded right. All of it! Who would've guessed that his hybrid Bajcardie friend could be so wise in a subject that would be so alien for him. Ravon's eyes shifted onto the scientist as a slight glimmer of hope rekindled in them. Perhaps he had called defeat too early? He could still turn this, maybe he just had to give Zeph some time. Try to swoon her off her feet like he would've tried back in the old days when they were young.

A smile finally came onto the face of Ravon as Bila talked about conquering, seducing and leaving the end open for the pilot to fill in with his thoughts. The wounds were healed and Thomas grabbed Bila around his neck and simply gave him a hug "Damn Bila... What have you done to my old friend? I'm starting to doubt if you're a parasite now. Such a Casanova expert." he teased him before he let go of him. A genuine smile on the pilot's face as he felt there was a chance to rectify all of what happened just before midnight. Confidence slipping back into his veins as he told himself to keep himself reigned in at keep it at a slow rate.

"What about you? Any progress with your lovergirl? What wash er name again? Nathalie? Kyra?" Thomas asked as he felt like they had talked enough about Thomas' love life and could switch it over to the Bajcardie's one.

Re: EPIL: S [D07|0101] This Is A Place For The Broken Hearted

Reply #9 –
[ Lt. JG Izar Bila | Below Decks Lounge | Deck 28 | USS Theurgy]
[Show/Hide]

@Nolan

As Bila worked out his insight of the situation, he noticed how gradually Ravon was shifting the expression of his face. That condemned man's look disappeared from his features and his pale eyes sparkled again. To the point that he even changed his punches into one of his trademarked bear hugs. The kind that made the scales on his neck bristle. "Hey, hey remember that I' ve a delicate and fragile neck" complained the chemist, but only half serious. "And yeah, I promise you that it's me, remember that between the two of us we only have one functional brain and it's mine" he kept teasing his friend until he finally freed him from his embrace. When he did so, Ravon had a radiant smile on his face. That sincere and contagious smile that Izar remembered so well. So he responded in the only way he could. Grinning in return.

However, when Ravon inquired about the state of his love interest, the half Cardassian's expression became a tight smile. "Kythalie... Kyth" he clarified to earn some time. "Let's see... where to begin..." he added, as he racked his fingers through his curly hair. " She got stuck in the Theurgy because of me. Then she had to drag me to the sickbay while I was babbling stuff in kardasi after a concussion... because you know, being screwed is the best way to impress a lady on my books... Of course it is..." he explained. Then, remembering what had happened afterwards, he hid his face behind his hands. When he spoke again, his voice was mutedand barely audible. But he couldn't mask the embarrassment he felt. "Then I ordered her to escort me to a Prophetsforsaken lab to use the ORE and try to treat some assimilated crewmembers..." Bila paused, and for a moment just sighed. "Where, of course, I killed her friend, and OBVIOUSLY, she was attacked by a freshly made drone and she was infected too with Borg nanoprobes... so naturally I threw away all my professional ethics and I had to use the ORE with her, before treating any other patient" Finally Bila took his hands off his face and looked at the pilot, despair again aflame in his greyish features. "The last time I saw her, the former Cayuga CMO was taking her to sickbay suffering radiation burns. She's probably recovered by now, but... I think I've made my best performance as a psycho scientist, Tom..." He assured. He knew he didn't need to make much of an effort to look like a mad scientist anyway. He knew that half the crew of his former starship considered that he wasn't entirely sane. And his Cardassian ancestry did not help at all in that regard.

Bila decided that perhaps he indeed needed another shot and picked up the glass he had left in precarious equilibrium on the edge of the table. He hadn't completely refilled it, so it barely contained a shot of kanar. That would be sufficient for the moment. He swallowed the contents of a quick gulp and leaned back on the table to serve himself a new dose. " I've performed my best portrayal of a dangerous madman, Tom. If there was any chance of... Whatever with Kyth, today I have stepped over it, burned it, reduced it to atoms and disintegrated it into subatomic particles..."  he declared with a sad smile.

Re: EPIL: S [D07|0101] This Is A Place For The Broken Hearted

Reply #10 –
[ Lt Cmdr Thomas Ravon | Below Decks Lounge | Deck 28 | USS Theurgy ] @Numen

How odd the universe functioned at times, first crumbling you down to a pathetic sack of beans before rebuilding it so you're on a slipstream to a radiant start! It was a good reminder why Bila was such a close friend to Thom. The Bajcardi complained about his delicate and fragile neck and Ravon couldn't help but laugh about it "Are you going to be such a pantsy too when it comes to women?" he asked his friend teasingly before bumping his shoulder against his as lightly as possible. At the mention of the scientist being the only one having a brain, Thom just scoffed.

Misery started just after that as the scientist began to explain what had happened between him and the Betazoid Security officer. Thom listened as he had traded the Kanar for a tea. Coffee would not help him get to sleep after all of this. His eyes studied his friend as he spoke about the events that had all lead to a catastrophic climax. The pilot's brows rose and furrowed at all of it as he shook his head slightly "Are you sure that between the both of us, you're the one that has a brain?" he teased his friend before smirking slightly and taking the situation more seriously again. He gave the entire situation some thought before he opened his mouth again to his scaly friend "You've not reached out to her yet I assume, being the cowardly lizard you are." he asked Bila, handing out some fresh insults along the way to get the man riled up. He needed to rile him up, to get some vigor back into him so he could use that momentum.

"Look, shit happens... Sometimes it really turns everything to shit..." he started "But... Did you ever consider that all of this could bring you closer?" he asked the Bajcardie "Sure you killed her best friend of sorts, but..." he paused as he studied Izar's face "It could be a reason to mourn together? To pick up your bond and build on it." The eyes of the pilot looked past Bila for a second as a newcomer entered the lounge. A surprise even glinted across the pilot's face as he couldn't have possibly have thought or imagined this turn of events from happening. For there she stood, Petty Officer Kythalie Benmual in her uniform no less as her eyes scanned through the lounge. She looked fine, after hearing what Bila had done to her, if anything... She had a certain aura around her.

"You know, why don't you ask her right now?" Thomas suggested as he nodded towards Kythalie to make his Bajcardie friend aware "Maybe I should call her?" he teased his friend soft enough for only him to hear.

Re: EPIL: S [D07|0101] This Is A Place For The Broken Hearted

Reply #11 –
[ Lt. JG Izar Bila | Below Decks Lounge | Deck 28 | USS Theurgy]
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@Nolan

Bila frowned deeply on his browridges when Ravon hinted that he was the duo's fool, but he said nothing, waiting for the pilot's opinion. Well, of an opinion that wasn't wrapped in the usual banter with which they had been interacting since they were only ensigns. However, when he accused him of cowardice for not having contacted the betazoid, it made him stand up in outrage, his chest puffed in a futile display of offended pride. "I AM MISTER SNEAKY LIZARD for you, feeble-minded" he said while poking his boney finger into the pilot's chest. However, he nodded at the end, confirming Thomas' suspicions. "Indeed, I haven't contacted her... yet. What could I tell her, 'hello, I'm the one who was about to send you out to have tea with the Prophets and who killed your friend by the way, shall we have a drink or something later?' C'mon Tom, you know me better," he exclaimed with a very ironic tone.

Despite this, he listened to the human's words, thoughtfully scratching his hairy jaw.  Somehow Ravon's words made sense. In a sad and somewhat pathetic way but maybe... maybe he was right. In a deplorable and a little tragic way, but Bila had always had a certain taste for melodrama. And he had made such a fool of himself in front of Kyth at that point that he couldn't be much more ashamed anymore. "Well, if that has some logic, but I don't know Tom, maybe..." he started to say. However he couldn't finish the sentence as the human interrupted him to point out Kyth's entry into the lounge.

Then Bila lost the little color that dyed his cheeks, and then blushed fiercely, so that his cheeks, ears and neck turned a flamboyant chestnut colour. He tried to crack a coherent response, but for several minutes he could only crack in silence. During that instant when the connection between his mouth and his brain shortcircuited, the pilot suggested slyly that they should get her attention. The very idea brought sobriety back to Izar in one blow. "DON'T YOU DARE!" he yelled in a surprisingly high-pitched voice as he threw a cushion into the pilot's face and pounced over the human, trying to silence him by all means.  "Don't open your beak, bird-brain, don't fuck it up even more," he hissed as he kept trying to hold his mouth closed.

Re: EPIL: S [D07|0101] This Is A Place For The Broken Hearted

Reply #12 –
[ Lt Cmdr Thomas Ravon | Below Decks Lounge | Deck 28 | USS Theurgy ] @Numen 

The performance Bila portrayed for nearly the entire below decks lounge made the pilot chuckle and snicker as the man did taunt him with insults. He gained more insight as to why the Bajcardie hadn't contacted the good security officer. To be fair, Thomas could get why, though there was no easy way around it though. Perhaps it wasn't in Bila though to simply confront her like Thomas would. They were two unique kinds, the one more tactful than the other. The universe did work in odd ways though as Kythalie did show up and the look on Bila's face was to die for really as Ravon couldn't help but laugh.

Truly the moment should've been captured with something, the drained face of Bila before his face turned in a weird chestnut color. Another unique moment to be witnessed to see his know-it-all-better friend dumbfounded and simply speechless in the moment. To add to the agonizing moment, Thomas seemed like he was about to call out to Kythalie before his face got muffled by a pillow. The high pitched voice to be heard by everyone in the lounge as even Benmual looked at the duo now.

The pillow covering his face never had enough pressure to actually suffocate him, yet Ravon couldn't help but laugh into it as his arms flailed around helplessly. Kythalie frowned where she stood as she looked at the scene. Dressed in a fresh security uniform, she made her way over to the duo who that technically were interrupting public order "Gentlemen? Is everything alright here?" she asked with a professional voice as her eyes darted to Bila before looking at Ravon. The pilot had heard her voice too and he quickly dispatched of the mongrel that had pounced him. He nearly kicked the Bajcardie off him, yet held on to him so he wouldn't be flung through the lounge. The eyes of Thomas now locked with Benmual as he chuckled "We're fine, just toying about. Right Bila?" he asked as he bumped his shoulder to his friend, placing an arm around his shoulder as Benmual looked at Bila. Her eyes piercing and her expression rather blank, it was unclear if she was mad at him, happy to see him or just doing her job.

Re: EPIL: S [D07|0101] This Is A Place For The Broken Hearted

Reply #13 –
[ Lt. JG Izar Bila | Below Decks Lounge | Deck 28 | USS Theurgy]
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@Nolan

If at some point in his life Bila had felt the desire to kill someone, preferably with a prolonged and agonizing pain, it paled side by side with the murderous craving he felt at that moment. If looks could kill, Thomas Ravon would have been reduced to a bloody and jelly-like mass atop the lounge couch. But, unfortunately, wishes didn't kill. And the hybrid had filled the murders he could perform in a day. One direct killing and all the indirect ones for not having the ORE calibrated on time had been more than enough for the pacifist Bajcardie. However, when he heard the pilot's laughter, half-muffled by the pillow, the urge to poison the flyboy with some cyanide in his coffee came anew.


But before he could put the threat into words, Kythalie stepped up in front of them, enquiring with that trademarked security tone that warned that any bullshit answer would wipe out the bones of both of them by spending the next few hours in the brig's worst cell what in Prophet's name they were doing. Izar tried to answer, but his throat only produced a drowned gurgling that was quickly drowned out by Ravon's reply. At least this time the pilot didn't decide to make the situation even worse and gave a half normal response. For his behalf, Bila stared at the security PO completely frozen. He only came out of that petrified state when Tom bumped his shoulder, which made him bend dangerously in the opposite direction, about to lose his balance and roll over the sofa like a puppet without strings tossed away by a mean child.

"Ye-yeah, the bird-brain is right, only two good friends fooling around and behaving like jerks," he confirmed, looking at Ravon sidelong with such a poisonous stare that he could have killed the human (for the second time in a few minutes). Eventually his hazel eyes returned to the Betazoid's face. Her expression was professional, almost distant. The hybrid shrank on himself and swallowed loudly. " I-I-am I'm glad you're all right K-Kyth..." he stuttered, trying to prevent his cheeks from dyeing reddish brown again.

Re: EPIL: S [D07|0101] This Is A Place For The Broken Hearted

Reply #14 –
[ Lt Cmdr Thomas Ravon | Below Decks Lounge | Deck 28 | USS Theurgy ] @Numen 

If eyes could kill was perhaps the most correct term as Ravon could see the venomous look in Bila's eyes when Kythalie had moved over to them and questioned what was going on. The pilot almost laughing when his friend managed to just break out a few drowned out gurgles. Though he knew it'd be most cruel to do so, even more so when 'his' girl was standing right in front of them. Thus Ravon took the lead to help out his poor scaly friend. Eventually his Bajcardie friend managed to chip in, even though he still looked like a venomous cobra ready to bite him. Ravon couldn't help but chuckle at his friend.

Benmual in the meantime looked down at the two of them with a stern look on her face and she could tell how Bila almost shrank into himself as he eventually managed to address her. A slight smile coming to her features as she nodded "Can't say the road to becoming back normal was painless..." she whispered before her black pools came to rest at Bila "But I think I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for your invention." she paused as she let her mind think over her answer. His invention did cost the life of one of her dear friends, yet she didn't hold the scientist responsible for it.

"Ah yes, our savior." Thomas chipped in as he expected an even more venomous look from his friend and his eyes went over the security officer. The reflex to pat Bila on his back was held back as it would probably make his scaly friend look even worse. Thomas knew this and he moistened his lips for a second before he looked at Benmual "I uh... Just realized I need to do some paperwork before I head in. So apologies for the fuss petty officer. I'll catch you later Bila." The Security officer just nodded at him and could pick up on some thoughts of Ravon. Most of them being about another woman and one thought jumped out, to go easy on Bila. A slight frown appeared on Kythalie's face before wished the lieutenant commander a good evening.

Kythalie's attention now coming fully on Izar as she looked at the now vacant spot besides him in the couch "Mind if I sat down besides you Lieut-... Bila?" she asked softly. She could use a drink and while she was still in uniform, she wasn't on duty any longer for today. Most of all though, she could use the company to talk to after losing so much today...

Re: EPIL: S [D07|0101] This Is A Place For The Broken Hearted

Reply #15 –
[ Lt. JG Izar Bila | Below Decks Lounge | Deck 28 | USS Theurgy]
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@Nolan

She was grateful. Well, sort of. Not that she expressed direct gratitude for the pain that he had caused her, but the feeling was there. Bila's heart rushed in his chest, drumming a cheerfully wild song. So much so that Bila nearly ignored the know-it-all remark that Ravon failed to restrain. "I-i-i gu-guess that someone has to do the re-real work while others devote themselves to play with tiny crafts and spin around in space," the chemist replied, sticking out his tongue in a better mood than he had in the last few minutes. It was far from a comment worthy of his customary wit, and there was still some stuttering in his speech. But it was an improvement. Part of the brain-mouth connection that was completely disconnected when the betazoid was around seemed to have made contact again.

But that connection broke again as Ravon put up a clumsy pretext to get out of there. "Traitor" he  muttered as the pilot walked away. If at any time in his life the hybrid had needed a chaperone, it was at that moment. Someone to save his arse when his nervousness betrayed him. And there he was, his supposed best friend, leaving him alone in time of need. In his mind, Bila began to plan how to program an unpleasant surprise in the Lone Wolf's replicator, one that he could easily dodge but that the human didn't expect. Something harmless but unpleasant, worthy of their days as ensings in the Thunderchild. However, his wicked plan was interrupted by Kyth's words.

"Oh! Ummh, no no! I mean, yeah, be my guess." Bila stuttered, turning his attention to the woman, as his face paled again, except for that fine line of scales that adorned his neck, where if he were a full-Cardassian his ridges should be, which took on an intense sienna tone.  Upon realizing this fact, Bila tried to cover them up, hiding them badly while as he raised his uniform collar, like a turtle trying to hide inside a shell too small for his head. Eventually, he made a theatrical gesture to invite her to sit next to him, and end up patting the abandoned cushion next to him. The same one with whom he had tried to suffocate Ravon barely a few minutes ago. " So... well... don't pay too much attention to Tom, he's a good person but he's such a hopeless idiot too," he explained with a nervous giggle. "We served together at Thundercild during the War and he has been my best friend since then. So, annoying as he is, he's a nice guy, most of the time" he blabbed very quickly, averting his eyes from the woman's face and trying to focus them anywhere in the lounge. Like the ceiling. Extremly interesting that ceiling. "So... uh... well... " he started to say, one of his hands still rubbing his neck while the other drums nervously over his knee "...how are you feeling? I mean you look pretty good but, you know..." When Bila realized how much double reading his words could have, he became mute, and the colour of his neck spread all over his face again.

Re: EPIL: S [D07|0101] This Is A Place For The Broken Hearted

Reply #16 –
[ PO2 Kythalie Benmual | Below Decks Lounge | Deck 28 | USS Theurgy ] @Numen


"You keep telling yourself that Bila." Ravon answered before he was branded a traitor by the Bajcardie. Ravon couldn't help but smirk and shake his head at the man as he winked. Ravon had simply stayed long enough for Bila to regain some composure, he doubted he could do anything more for him for that time. Knowing Bila though, perhaps he ought to have stayed a little while longer to see if all would go well, but he'd risk the chance of coming onto the quite fine looking security officer himself. Thus he
 departed, giving the two of them a final look before leaving out the doors of the below decks lounge. 

Kythalie could see the Bajcardie blush in various spots and she couldn't help but smile lightly as he clumsily tried to cover it up with awkward movements before raising his uniform collar. He patted down at the place next to him and the woman moved over to sit besides him as she crossed her legs and smiled at him as he tried his utmost best to hide his blush, though it failed remarkably. She nodded as he explained his connection to the Lone Wolves commander and she noticed him staring up at the ceiling for some reason. Her eyes followed his and as Bila blabbered one of the holowaiters came around and took her order for a beverage. 

Kythalie turned her attention back to Bila now as he nervously tapped his knee and asked her how she was. She chuckled lightly as she placed her hand on his, trying to sooth it "Bila..." she said slowly as she looked at him "Calm down will you.. I'm not going to bite your head off."  she tried to reassure him, having noticed just how nervous he was around her. It did make her wonder if she was making him feel uneasy, if she perhaps needed to leave him be. 

"I've been fine otherwise... And well thank you for telling me I look pretty good." she snickered as she kept her hand on his "It's been rough though... Lost one of my best buddies with that Borg encounter." she admitted as her eyes broke away from him and looked at the blood wine "How about you? Are you doing okay? You saw some really nasty stuff down in medical..."

Re: EPIL: S [D07|0101] This Is A Place For The Broken Hearted

Reply #17 –
[ Lt. JG Izar Bila | Below Decks Lounge | Deck 28 | USS Theurgy]
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@Nolan

" Are you sure you don't bite?" Bila asked with a timid smile, in an attempt to make a slightly out-of-place joke. Kyth soon placed her hand on his, along with a few words of gratitude for his thoughtless compliment. This made the hybrid gain a little more confidence, a little bit of the inner reasuring that warmed his heart. Almost as much as Benmual's palm was warming the back of his hand. Or as the blush heated his cheeks. Izar wanted to hide it, not leave that obvious sign of how he felt towards her in plain sight, but at that point it was a lost battle. In addition, the large amount of kanar he had ingested before Ravon made his appearance failed to help him to maintain an undisturbed appearance. Nor was it his standard behavior. Poker faces, decieve and overly dramatic demeanor? For sure. But stern and emotionless? Not his cup of tea. "It's ok, I'm... I'm... fine... mostly fine. It's just... it's has been a long day," he tried to excuse himself without much success.


Shortly afterwards, the woman kept talking, looking away from his face. Her words explained a little why she was there. But, when she averted her black eyes from his face, Bila died a little bit inside. His face tense and gloomy again. The chemist took a long time to give her an answer. "I... I don't know," he confessed. "It's been a long day," he repeated. "A very long one. Too long in fact." The hybrid leaned astern, until his shoulders rested on the back of the couch, oddly contoured so that his hand did not lose its contact with the Betazoid's one. Then Bila was quiet for a moment. He elaborated his ideas inside his head with his eyes closed, darkened by his eyeridges. Delighted in the unexpected but desired contact. Quietness thickened between them but, for once, it wasn't awkward, but comforting.

"I..." Bila said after a while, before he paused again. He opened his eyes and looked Kythalie in the face, his eyes weary and grieving. "I... I'm sorry Kyth, so sorry about Eboh. It wasn't supposed to happen the way it did. No... it was not supposed to end like this. I was trying to save him. I MUST save him... but I couldn't. I tried... but I failed... I just couldn't..." he whispered, with a sad smile on his lips.

Re: EPIL: S [D07|0101] This Is A Place For The Broken Hearted

Reply #18 –
[ PO2 Kythalie Benmual | Below Decks Lounge | Deck 28 | USS Theurgy ] @Numen 

Bila seemed to regain his sense for humor as he asked Kythalie if she was sure she didn't bite. The Betazoid looked at the scaly man next to her "Not hard... Sometimes..." she offered with a coy grin on her face, knowing all too well that it would probably cause the man to create a flurry of colors across his scales. She couldn't help but chuckle and glanced a few more times at Izar before she looked around in the lounge for a second. Just registering who was there and where they were. Bila did his best to tell Kythalie that he was fine, that it had been a long day, though the both of them knew what kind of a day they both endured.

By the look of his figure she could tell he was struggling with something. Guilt most probably as it seemed he took the loss of Eboh quite personally. Kythalie kept her hand were it was in Bila's palms as she got the drink she ordered in silence and gave a kind nod to the holowaiter before he sauntered off. Her attention drawn back to Bila when he spoke up again after a while. There it was, the true outspoken guilt he felt. Kythalie smiled faintly as she let him finish his thoughts.

Her hand squeezed gently, much more delicate than his bird brained friend "Bila... You did everything in your power to save him. The ORE, it was a prototype. A possibly cure to early assimilation and it worked I mean... I'm the living proof of it." she smiled softly as she kept her voice down so the conversation would be just between them "Eboh... Ekon... He was lost the moment he got assimilated aboard the Allegiant. His chances of survival were slim at best, you did what you could... But in war, you can't expect to save everyone."  she concluded. It was the way she looked at it, the only way that would justify the death of the El-Aurian.

She shook her head "Either way, we shouldn't dwell too long on the past. I've seen people lose their minds over less." she admitted "Don't let him haunt you. You know Eboh too, he wouldn't have wanted that." 

Re: EPIL: S [D07|0101] This Is A Place For The Broken Hearted

Reply #19 –
[ Lt. JG Izar Bila | Below Decks Lounge | Deck 28 | USS Theurgy]
[Show/Hide]

@Nolan

When Kyth squeezed his hand, in a comforting and gentle way, Bila looked up at the betazoid's face, his cheeks deeply tinted brown, the scales of his neck obviously darker than usual. It made little sense to hide how he felt around her, after all... she was able to feel it. Betazoids were telepaths and, even though there was a kind of tacit pact of not peer into other people's thoughts if they weren't invited to, the chemist knew that he was broadcasting his feelings around to any empath or telepath on three decks around. Maybe it was better that way. Maybe she could unravel anything intelligible among the tangle of confusion, guilt, sadness and awkwardness that he felt. Perhaps Kyth could explain him if that feeling he felt was a random and inexpected infatuation or something else. Or maybe it was simply that the bottle and a half of kanar that had slipped between his chest and back had had a greater effect than he wanted to acknowledge. Maybe due all this, at the time, he simply didn't care. Besides, she had promised him that she wouldn't bite him... yet?

Whatever it was, he just looked at her, his hazel eyes wide-open and alert, like a doe'. And he listened to her, carefully, feeding upon her words as if he were famished, because those were words he wanted to hear. That he needed to hear. Yeah, maybe they were almost the same ones Ravon had just told him a few minutes ago. ....but... what did the bird's brain know? He hadn't been there. SHE had been there. She had lived that madness with him.  There was logic in his words. His mind could quickly accept her words. But his heart? That was a different story.


"I know. I know." He acquiesced with a slight nod. "I have lost more friends, more companions, at the frontline. But they were always... names that appeared on KIA charts. I didn't have their lives in my hands, I didn't see them die... like this. And I wish I never had to see him again... but I'm afraid we've been dragged here, to this starship, to this... flight to protect the truth that's just a way to label  a war, a sacrifice and death with a more poetic name. I only wish, that we could return to the Cayuga. A few months exploring the nebula, meeting new species, discovering new things. Maybe a couple of days to relax on the beach" The chemist shook his head and laughed at the nonsense he was saying. "You can imagine it?, after all this shit, a relaxing vacations on Risa. Some cocktails at the beachand a toast Ekon, what do you think?" he asked in a playful voice. It was easier to think of something like that.

Re: EPIL: S [D07|0101] This Is A Place For The Broken Hearted

Reply #20 –
[ PO2 Kythalie Benmual | Below Decks Lounge | Deck 28 | USS Theurgy ] @Numen 

The Bajcardie radiated a lot of feelings and Kyth could feel them, yet had her mental barriers up as it wasn't wise to lower them in a place like the lounge. She could feel or at least acknowledge the fact that he was transmitting, yet she didn't peek or venture further into it as she looked into his brown eyes. The way he looked at her made her laugh lightly, giggle almost as it seemed like he had never seen her before and was just dumbfounded. He was listening to her words though, that much she could tell by his body posture and when she was done he replied to her.

Kythalie couldn't help but shrug "It's different to see someone die rather than reading it in a post operation report or a list.. There's no arguing that." she replied and she shook her head slightly as Bila spoke of wishing to be back on the Cayuga. Of their original mission to explore the nebula and do scientific research. It was a boring assignment for Kythalie to work on. Sure the first few weeks of it were fun as it meant a lot of downtime and just trivial tasks, but there was little challenge to the assignment on Cayuga. Theurgy was different, more action filled would be an understatement. It felt like they were thrown from one extremity to another. From perfect safety to instant death lurking around the corner. Theurgy would prove to be a challenge to remain alive, that much was sure.

"I'd like to think that we'd be able to head to a beach for drinks and toast for Ekon." she smiled as she shrugged "Who knows, perhaps we'll have a beach where we're going next." she smiled and looked back at Bila "By the way, don't think I haven't forgotten about your promise. You owe me a meal." Kythalie teased the Bajcardie.

Re: EPIL: S [D07|0101] This Is A Place For The Broken Hearted

Reply #21 –
[ Lt. JG Izar Bila | Below Decks Lounge | Deck 28 | USS Theurgy]
[Show/Hide]

@Nolan

Bila smiled when she mentioned his promise. In an act of bravery. Or, perhaps, in an act of absolute lack of decorum as a result of booze, Bila knelt at Kyth's feet. Holding her hands, he raised his baritone voice loud enough to be heard at the nearest tables. "I, Izar Bila, promise you, Kythalie Benmual, that I will invite you to a dinner before the end of the week or I will eat my own boots seasoned with Yamok sauce and a good Kanar." he proclaimed in a serious tone and dramatic attitude. Although his hazel eyes sparkled with a mischievous humour, one that was more suited to his nature than the gloomy mood that had possessed him throughout the evening. "Unless we dock on a planet with a beach, then you'll have to join me for some moonlight cocktails...or starlight...after dinner or instead of di-dinner," he said afterwards stammering a bit again.

He certainly didn't have much idea where the Theurgy was heading at the time. He vaguely remembered a place that sounded like a village. Or town? He was not sure. By the time the captain had made himself heard through the ship's speakers, Bila had been up to his elbows in figuring out how to treat Lorad. Part of his brain had recorded the message. But not the details. As far as he knew, they might well be heading towards a practically dead system, four dead rocks orbiting a dying star that, for some reason, had enough interest to maintain a small station. So he probably just had to come up with a plan for the best dinner of the last century. Perhaps he could even blackmail Ravon into acting as a waiter, and thus ensure that he was provided with witty phrases if, as he expected, he was reduced to a stammering mass as soon as he saw her in her civilian finery. The indecency of his scrawny figure in a bathing suit was of course not a very plausible option, was it?


~FIN
 
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