Sun, Sand, and The Service

Posted on Sat Aug 27th, 2022 @ 10:17am by Captain William Maddox & Commander Ayanja Tusalo & Lieutenant Commander Javiylah MacArthur

4,155 words; about a 21 minute read

Mission: The Song Of Silver Wings
Location: Casperia Prime
Timeline: A week and a bit after Golden Corral

Normally when someone visited one of the three known jewel worlds of the Federation they couldn't keep their eyes off the surroundings. Casperia Prime had bright white sand beaches, crystal clear waters, vibrant sunsets... and that was just the space port. Somehow getting to one of the many resorts dotting the planet truly had it all. And yet, despite all the amenities, views, and stimuli Aya only had eyes for her wife. Laid out, soaking in the sun, skin shimmering... ehem she really was distracting. Really Aya hadn't even considered focusing on anything or anyone else since they left Betazed. Actually, this day out was the first time they'd spent anytime, well, away from their Cabana.

“Staring again, love?” Javi didn’t open her eyes as she spoke, amusement clear in her voice. She stretched then settled back onto her lounger, the sun, and temperature perfect with a slight breeze.

“I mean you know I can’t help myself…” Aya grinned, shifting to her side, biting her lip as she watched Javi stretch. Even at over sixty Javi had the body of a woman half her age. Arms, shoulders, back, legs, all sharply defined. How could Aya not stare? “Not that it’s anything new, I was never good at taking my eyes off you.” She reached out, fingers tracing over Javi’s forearm, her skin tingling as she felt the woman’s soft skin.

“Mmm, I would have to agree,” Javi chuckled as she opened her eyes, covering Aya’s fingers with her own. “Not that I minded...once I noticed,” she laughed at herself before giving their fingers a gentle squeeze.

“Mmm took a bit…” Aya squeezed back, turning her wrist so their hands laced together. “But you more than made up for not noticing sooner.” And now that overwhelming urge to kiss her came back. The excitement of that moment was still just as strong as their first night together. “And now we don’t have to worry about you missing it again.”

“That is true…” Javi smiled and shifted on her side to face Aya, reaching out with her other hand to cup Aya’s cheek. “I’m glad you didn’t give up on us.”

“Never.” never again. Even a decade later Aya still felt guilty for the time she had given up on Javi, or at least tried to. Sure her mind had told her it was the right move, her heart obviously knew her mind was full of shit. “You’re stuck with me for the rest of our lives.” Aya’s smile was bright, full of love, and more than a little eagerness, she leant forward to kiss her wife.

“I’m looking forward to it,” Javi smiled back, leaning forward to meet Aya’s lips with her own, making a happy noise as they kissed, her arm going around Aya’s shoulders.

Aya leaned into the embrace, scooting herself closer, their legs intertwining as the kiss deepend. One, became two, two became more, and without thinking Aya’s hands had begun to tease down her hips, the other dropping from her shoulder, each following hard lines of muscle and faded scars, unconsciously following tracks to her favorite bits of...

"Excuse me, honoured guest?"

Aya's hands froze, the shock of hearing another voice stopping the moment.

The voice was that of the resorts AI, who in what appeared to be a fetish of the Casperia locals, had a name much longer than was perhaps strictly necessary. Blooms Of Ember Down Alit On Cotton Seen At Sunset was attentive, kind, and for the most part a silent party during their vacation. A replicated meal prepared here, iced drinks here, a perfectly controlled climate and more importantly an iron-clad privacy screen.

The voice was a directional sound wave projected from a patch of sand to Tusalo's left, which had hardened under the AIs control and become a speaker plate.

"I wish not to intrude," Ember Down said apologetically. "But you have a guest awaiting you at the resort's main reception. This guest is a member of Starfleet, and so triggered the override of your discretionary privacy."

Aya seriously considered not even acknowledging the AI. While helpful and actually quite sweet, she didn't want to hear anything about Starfleet or really even the outside world for at least another week. "Blooms, has there been some kind of medical or mechanical emergency? Or a sector-wide Red Alert? If the answer is no, then politely but sternly tell whoever it is to buzz off, we're not Starfleet for another eight days."

As if to emphasize her point, Aya took a long drink from her colada, the cool drink helping to calm her nerves a bit.

"You may NOT inform them of where we are, either," Javi commented as she reached over and grabbed Aya's free hand, giving a gentle squeeze to try and help soothe her.

Aya smiled, squeezing her hand back, the contact soothing her. Whatever happened they'd be ok, she had Javi, nothing could touch her world as long as she had Javi.

"The nature of the guest's arrival is of an engineering emergency, according to his statement to my instantiation at the main reception. If you desire I will pass along your sentiment to him directly, and inform him to contact you in eight days," Bloom said, before adding. "This evening there will be stellar conjunction involving all three main stars of the Orion constellation. This event is being abstracted to the fullest effect by orbital projection arrays. Would you want me to postpone dinner for the evening, to enjoy the spectacle?"

"Yes please, convey our most flippant and unapologetic regret at ignoring his technical brouhaha to continue our honeymoon." She squeezed Javi's hand again with a sigh, her fingers still tracing up and down her naked thigh. "As for dinner.... what do you think love? We've certainly been making our own fireworks for the last couple of days, might be nice to enjoy someone else's, at least until later."

“Sounds good to me, the event does sound interesting,” Javi agreed with a contemplative expression, a smile appearing as she continued,” And we certainly can make our own fireworks later.”

"Making your own fireworks is considerably more dangerous than your tone suggests. And given the lack of lab equipment or protective clothing, rather more hazardous than that."

This time the voice was not Blooms, though it had the somewhat stilted pronunciation of an artificial intelligence trying to sound like one of the cool kids. At first wash, it looked just like a cat. But then the second glance came in and removed the illusion: segmented alloy plating in Starfleet grey, with its lozenged shaped head tipped with three glowing blue photoreceptors. It sat on its back legs between the beach chairs, a segmented tail curled around its fore paw-...feet, traction pads. Not paws. The sand around the device's feet was rippling with a flexing ring of sandy spikes, no doubt Bloom trying to politely shoo it away.

"There are," the mechanical device said as two of its light began to flash rapidly. "... thirty-three storefronts on record that sell safely constructed fireworks and other recreational accelerants. There are also six hundred locally registered suppliers of items of legal questionability that could provide more potent but logarithmically less safe alternatives. Would you like me to list them?"

"Wh-what? What the fuck, Bloom!? What is going on here, why is there a...cat?" Aya took a breath as she sat up staring down the construct. "Oi! Can you-it see us? Bloom what happened to privacy mode!?" Aya had quickly moved in front of Javi, debating if getting up and giving the thing a quick kick would work out. "I better see photoreceptors pointed at the sand."

The cat-robot thing looked up at Aya, and its three eyes glowered a silver-white light for a moment.

"A brief medical diagnostic suggests you do not have any deformation of your optic nerve or the visual cortex. Your ability to perceive has not been hindered. This is proven out by the fact you have animamphires my chassis's original design template," the robot said with a hint of smugness.

"I am sorry honoured guest, but the object in question is running a very sophisticated suite of anti-intrusion measures. I am attempting to remove it from the premises," Bloom said helpfully. The ring of agitated sand around the cat robot jiggled back and forth, like a soap bubble trying to find the perfect surface tension.

"I am a FELINE, a Field Enhanced Logic & Intelligence Network Engine, 3rd Revision. My designation is Morephus," it was proudly. "Please inform the hotel AI that its attempts are getting sand into my monomer channels and as such I will require an extended cleaning cycle. This is not optimal as Captian Maddox only brought a charging cable and not the suggested sanitation tool pack."

"Captain Maddox is going to need far more than a sanitation tool for you or them if you don't get the hell out of here!" Aya was sitting fully forward now, her fist clenched tight. Oh whoever this Captain Maddox person was they were going to regret barging their way in. "Bloom keep it up, hell throw some sand at the operator's way as well if you can"

"Unfortunately I cannot. I was instructed to find Commander Tusalo, which I have accomplished. Captain Maddox wishes to discuss an urgent matter with you at your earliest convenience. He has reserved the Chamberlain Suite at the resort's administration and business-" Morpheus continued the talk, but its long segmented tail flicked, revealing a dark glossy tip. As it flicked back and forth a narrow red beam lashed out, turning the forward arc of Bloom's sand dance into a fence of fused glass. "-centre. He has already collected minor refreshments."

"I don't really care, if he got the Chef all the way from Sisko's to cook a three-course meal, it doesn't just give him the right to interrupt our time!" Aya glanced over at Javi trying to regain some of her calm. "I don't even know a Captain Maddox."

Javi had grabbed a robe the moment the robot…whatever appeared. Having observed the interaction so far, she frowned at the name and then sighed. “I believe that might be the officer I met prior, I had mentioned a meeting. I also assured that I would give an answer after said leave.” She continued with a muttered,” Not even respecting this…” She wrapped Aya in a hug, encouraging her to turn and face her, trying to help soothe her while ignoring the intruder for the moment. “Take a breath with me”

Aya nodded, turning away from the FELINE and wrapping herself in Javi's robe. her eyes fluttering shut as she felt the warmth of the woman's body on her own, their heads tipping to rest together. "Imzadi" One word and all the same feelings all the warmth flowed across their bond, mind and body connected in a way no two others could. Aya took a long breath, her hands unclenching, slowly resting on Javi's thighs as she centered herself.

"I don't want to meet someone who'd interrupt our time like this..." Aya pouted, still pointedly ignoring the FELINE.

“I know, love, but apparently we don't have a choice, that thing will just keep interrupting us. Just breathe with me” Javi replied through their bond, guiding Aya through another long inhale and exhale. She kept Aya close, encouraging her to rest her head on her shoulder as she looked down at the intruder,” You may inform Maddox that we will meet him in one hour, nae arguments from him, now leave.” She immediately turned her attention back to Aya, her hands trying to massage the tension out of her shoulders and back, "That’s it, keep breathing with me.”

Aya nodded breathing in and out with Javi, her eyes still tightly shut as she regained her composure. One hour, she could do that, she could give that no-good... Breathe She could find solace in Javi for an hour and come at whatever this was with a level head. It wasn't the first time she'd been reminded about her tempter, acting too quickly for her own good. It might have been for the wrong reasons but wasn't something a Command officer should be doing.

"Good," Javi murmured into Aya's ear as she turned her back on the machine and walked away, knowing Aya would follow. She had no further concern for it or the person who sent it until they were ready to meet them. Right now, she had her wife to soothe.

Shooting a look at Morpheus Aya was quick on Javi's heels, interlacing their fingers together as they walked back to the cabana. Her energy still high, Aya could already feel herself settling. The warmth of the sun and sand grounded her to the moment rather than the interruption.

"You are a horrible little...little...mechanism!" Bloom hissed from the cordon of glass that had been etched into the sand. Morpheus shrugged off the jibe, delicately hopped over the cordon and began to make its way back to the tree line.

An hour later saw both of them walking through the building towards the meeting location, neither in uniform nor wearing their badges.

"Are you sure that you want me there? That...thing specified you," Javi asked again, wanting to make sure she had Aya's preference right.

"Of course I do." Aya stopped to take Javi's hands in her own, smiling softly at the vision of a woman before her. "This is about us, not just me or you." Squeezing Javi's hands she lent forward for a kiss. "Besides, if he gets snippy again with that cat, who's going to keep me from crushing it like a can if you're not there?"

Javi looked down at their clasped hands, smiling at the words, ”It is about us.” She took her time with their kiss, not particularly concerned about being late, before drawing back,”I certainly can assist with ensuring the…machine isn’t squashed by you.” Javi, however, didn’t promise that she wouldn’t touch the machine.

"All that matters," Aya said with a soft smile, swinging their arms a moment before giving her hands a light squeeze. "Anything else after that is his problem." Aya still didn't want to go in, she wanted to back to her honeymoon and spending time with Javi. But she had to see what this Captain Maddox wanted, if for nothing else then to make him go away. "Ready?"

The Chamberlain Suite was the Casperian's attempt at making a business centre. Comfortable chairs, a conference table, and a free-standing matter replicator for all basic needs. But then their pathological need to make it an oasis from work butted up against the basic needs of its function: the carpeting was nearly something you had to wade through. The air was scented with sandalwood and lavender, but now with hints of more familiar flora from Betazed.

"Commander Tusalo," Maddox said, getting up from the chair he'd been sat in before halting halfway out. "And Commander MacArthur. Sorry for impeding on your shore leave like this but there is a time factor."

"Honeymoon," Aya said sternly, taking Javi's hand, striding just a few pace in front of the other woman. "You're interrupting our honeymoon, so this better be damned good." She took the seat directly across from the Captain, giving Javi a little tug to join her at the table.

"Ah," Maddox said with understanding. "Then I am truly sorry. But I'd not be here if it wasn't necessary."

He looked at MacArthur.

"You told me you'd give me your answer in two weeks, after your honeymoon. Unfortunately, as I warned you the gravity currents of the Reef Stars have begun to shift earlier than we predicted. Our window for entry into the search area is beginning to close. We now have one week to onboard supplies and personnel before we have to launch, or else we'll be forced to enter via a secondary coordinate set that will put a rescue operation out of the question," Maddox explained.

“I see,” Javi sat next to her wife as she replied, keeping their hands clasped. She wasn’t particularly surprised to hear that the interstellar phenomena had shifted in a less favourable direction. That being said, this hardly seemed like an “engineering emergency” as the concierge AI had stated over an hour earlier.

"In context for you Commander Tusalo, I'd approached your wife to lead her SAR-1 team on a long-range rescue mission into the Reef Stars. It's an uncharted area of the deep galactic core we've only been able to venture into with the aid of a new drive technology, the prototype of which was installed aboard the USS Icarus," Maddox leaned across the table, placing a data chip on the glossy varnished wood. "Bloom? Would you open file Melchior 34-Beta?"

"Of course honoured guest."

The concierge AI opened the file, projecting it as a holographic pane rotating slowly above the conference room table. Within the pane data tables appeared, and diagrams of a strange starship of clearly Federation design but oddly vertically stacked. Large swaths of its saucer section and keel were flashing red, or blacked out entirely.

"Those three brothers I was telling you about MacArthur, were able to dig out a bit more information from the crash beacon's data burst. Diagnostic data, a lot of telemetry information, and the last log entry before activation by the ship's commanding officer," Maddox reached out and with a gesture conjured a file to begin playing. Static laced and fading in and out of audibility, overlaid across a trembling sonic echo, was a voice.

"Trouble... strange readings... we got... hit hard... came at... night... whispers in the dark... sitting duck... don't know who... what... force of nature... phenomena... come for us... we found... meant to know... help us... home......."

"Hawk..." Aya mouth fell open a bit, sitting forward. Her hand still intertwined with Javi's she stared at the visual, the transmission starting to repeat, the man's profile image appearing next to a visualization. "I knew he'd gotten a new ship, but he never said which one." Not needing to hear the desperation in the normally confident man's voice Aya quickly reached forward to pause the recording. her other hand hidden in Javi's lap, squeezing tighter as she tried to gain control again.

"I won't pretend learning about your past association with him on board the USS Odyssey isn't helpful here, but time is not on our side." Maddox said, as gently as he could. "I helped to train Hawk and his crew for the Icarus's maiden voyage into the Reef Stars. They are the best, most well-trained in Starfleet I could manage to assemble. And you know Hawk, he has a way of getting the most out of his people."

He nodded at the holo pane and its frozen audio file.

"That's a call for help. We received it two weeks ago, and I've been moving the stars of the firmament to get the Icarus's sister ship online and away on a retrieval mission. The Daedalus was slated for a deep-range exploration mission into the Delta/Gama borderlands at the galactic edge, now we're retooling her for entry into the Reef Stars six months ahead of her scheduled launch. Extra supplies, specialist retrieval teams, the cutting edge of Starfleet R&D that isn't nailed down. Anything and everything we think we'll need once we're out there."

He took a breath, compressing his lips.

"So, apology out of the way for interrupting your honeymoon. But I need Javi's team, to that end that I also need someone with as much skin in the game as I do on this mission: Ayanja, I could use an executive officer. And before you think it, no this isn't a bribe to get you and Javi to agree to the posting. There's no room on the Daedalus for passengers. I want the executive officer the files tell me you are," Maddox said.

Javi felt a surge of pride at the offer of executive officer, aboard an important experimental vessel at that, knowing that Aya was very qualified and this was recognition of that. It was eclipsed by the flare of anger though she did try and throttle it, at the mention that the offer wasn’t a bribe; the mere idea was an insult to them both. Javi couldn’t keep her eyes from narrowing even though she managed to keep her face neutral and her visible hand relaxed.

Aya could feel the pride from Javi, the care and support the woman sent over their bond, tamping down her own shock and adrenaline filled confusion. She also felt the anger, the way Javi's had twisted in her own. "You were the one supposed to be keeping me calm..." She smirked a bit, knowing there was no way for Maddox to have heard what she said. "I appreciate that Captain, and you're forgiven for interrupting our honeymoon, but I'll remember this for future recompence..."

Aya tapped the table, biting her lip a moment, turning to Javi again. She knew what she wanted to do, what she felt she had to do, but she needed Javi's blessing. "Are you ok if I say yes?"

Whilst the couple deliberated Morpheus delicately jumped from the plush carpeting onto the conference table, shaking out one of its back legs in a little blizzard of sandy particulates. It then sat to the side of Maddox, fastidiously choosing to ignore the emotional turmoil it had had some small part in accomplishing.

"Sorry, you know how I feel about any questioning regarding our integrity" Javi apologized, distinctly sheepish as she gave their hands a reassuring squeeze. Aya’s question made her blink, not expecting it, "Why are you asking my permission, it’s your decision…?"

"It's not my decision alone," Another squeeze and a mental chuckle, Javi could be so straightforward sometimes. You're my wife, it means you at least have some say in my decisions and this is a big one."

”...I hadn’t…thought…that…" Javi knew Aya could feel her confusion turn into embarrassment at the gentle explanation. ”Of course you can"

"It's a learning experience for both of us." Aya smiled, full and genuine, Aya really wanted to kiss her but would settle for another squeeze of the hand, her thumb gliding over Javi's. With a sigh, she turned to face the Captain and that damned cat. "We accept your offers to join the Daedalus' mission, Captain."

Javi nodded to give a physical affirmation of her own though she let Aya's words speak for her. She pointedly ignored the existence of the machine that had interrupted them earlier; Javi wasn't about to call it a "cat."

"Outstanding. I wish I could offer more of a consolation prize for the loss of your honeymoon, but we're nearing the bottom of an hourglass. I can give you two hours here, but then we'll need to beam up to the Armstrong in orbit. Then it'll be a day's sprint to Demeter to pick up a few stragglers there, where we'll transfer to the Dauntless class slipstream courier ship Shadowfax to get us to our launch site which is on the other side of Federation space too where we are now," Maddox said, a relieved expression flitting across his face for a moment. "I can have Morpheus here aid in helping you settle your arrangements here. It's been an invaluable aid I will tell you that."

"I live to serve," the FELINE said. The table surface underneath it was beginning to rime with frost, no doubt Bloom's attempt to shift the horrible little mechanism off of the tabletop without disturbing its guests. "I have already catalogued your belongings, and have enlisted the aid of the concierge AI to begin the compartmentalization of your luggage."

"Yay..." Aya shared a look with Javi, not quite sure how she felt about the FELINE having inventoried and stored a record of everything they brought with them to Casperia. They were going to have to come back one day, once they saved Hawk and she got tired to reminding the Klingon that he needed saving in the first place... but they had to find him first. "We'll see you in two hours aboard the Armstrong Captain."

"Good," Maddox said with the slightest hint of relief in his voice. "Oh, and before I forget, congratulation on your nuptials."

 

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