A Marine enters a bar... part 1

Posted on Fri Mar 16, 2018 @ 12:23am by Civilian 'Key Holder' Yolanthe Ibalin & First Lieutenant Gordon Blue

2,443 words; about a 12 minute read

Mission: Victory Conditions
Location: The Box of Delights
Timeline: MD04 1900

:ON:

With the successful completion of the Shield test, the crew of Svikiri and the others ships who weren't essential to the post exercise analysis were granted shoreleave, and a flood of Starfleet personnel flooded onto he Promenade.

The crowds surged around Gordon, a rainbow of sentient life, and the throng on the promenade moved him along until he found an eddy, people circling around the main entrance to the largest of the many bars, restaurants and clubs on the prom. Bright neon letters proclaimed "The Box of Delights."

Trying not to look like a Marine ; and not an Orion Pirate, is not easy for Blue. HE had opted for a pair of Cargo pants in black, and a muscle undershirt in the same color with; what his fellow Marines laughed was 'The loudest Hawaiian shirt on the station', his unbuttoned shirt to give him a casual look, he had worn top sider shoes to really seem like a big green tourist while he sported sunglasses and his shaven head.

He had allowed the flow of the people to guide him; a crowd usually heads to a place of fun so it was not a bad idea to 'go with the flow' this time and see where he landed? He went into the establishment, nudging his way through the crowd in polite fashion he made his way to the bar.

"One Dark Ale." He ordered.

The woman who came over to him had pale blue skin, and slightly darker hair. She was tall too, a good hand's width over Gordon himself. She smiled down at him, with eyes that were pure white, no obvious iris or pupil. "We have a Betazoid porter, a Terran stout and Bolian dark on tap, and a bottled Ktarian Bitter. What do you fancy?"

Ktarian Bitter Please." Blue Smiled. "It is good to have real choices again." he had a sly smile. "And Thank you."

"You're welcome. I specialise in all handcrafted non-replicated food an drink, non of your ferengi pig-swill here." Yolanthe reached down to a fridge tucked under the counter, produced a bottle of the bitter, and cracked the wax cap off on the bar mounted cap hook. "So, have you come far? You're Orion, yes?"

"Yes I am ." He accepted the bottle. "I was raised on Earth." He took a long first draft. "It's not easy being Green..." He joked at the line. Let us say I have been around." He chuckled. "I can see why the place is packed." He glanced about. "The beer is good and the place has flavor." He raised his bottle and took a swig.

"Don't I know it." Her body flushed a stronger shade of blue, a pale shade of lapis lazuli. "They're a good brewery. But most places don't make enough for me to keep anything in stock permanently, so the menu always changes. What brings you to my happy little pleasure palace?"

"The allure of Wine, women and Loud music?" Blue chuckled. "Actually I just followed the crowd and got lucky to find myself here." He tapped the bar lightly. "The Name is Gordon..." He offered a hand.

She reached over and shook. "Yolanthe." So if you arrived in my establishment by happy accident, did the same bring you to the station? Or are you here with a purpose?"

"Work." He took another drink. "Why do people come to stations; the opportunity to do more, I came here to fulfill a slot and the benefits are rather good. I do what I love and get paid." He chuckled. "I am a trainer, I have some people to train, up and up side of things, I was raised in the Federation so no Syndicate work for me. No broken bones for failure either." He laughed. "Helps to have legit work."

Yolanthe raised an eyebrow at the mention of the syndicate. "A trainer. Who do you train? And in what?"

"I have some combat knowledge that I pass along to those that need it." Blue said calmly. "The Federation is my current employer; they are giving me people to train so I do that and once out the door." He drained the bottle and smiled. "Let loose a little. That was good, another please?"

She knocked the cap off another bottle and handed it over. A waitress came over. The dark haired Risan had long legs and a short skirt, and the sort of body that could cause a pile up in a shuttle bay. She handed Yolanthe a padd, picked up a waiting tray of drinks, gave Blue a wink, and sashayed off. Yolanthe picked up the padd, glanced at his contents and started picking glassware from the racks under the counter. "So, Starfleet," she began filling a glass under a tap. "But you didn't say what you train them in...?"

Blue had returned the wink with a grin. "What else would someone like me typically be good to train someone with... combat." He took a drink of the beer. "Hopefully they learn well what I train them for and stay alive long enough to reach old age?" He chuckled. "Even middle age might be a choice."

Yolanthe snorted. "Sending boys to war. The Federation should be ashamed of itself."

"No I think they are more the human Boyscout saying.; 'Be prepared', is more their idea." Blue winked. "Better to be ready for war than to learn the rules during war. Besides, you would not want me unemployed would you, I thought we might be friends and all?" He gave a sly grin as he spoke.

She looked him up and down, and her skin and hair turned from blue to a rose pink, "Oh, I'm sure I could find a use for you."

"I am complemented by your sentiment." He smiled and winked. "And your sentiments are duly noted, might even be considered if I mess this job up." He chuckled.

"I'm always on the look out for more dabo boys." She indicated the packed tables to the her far right. "And its hard to mess up standing there and looking pretty."

"I am too honest a guy to take good Latinum for doing nothing though, be a waste of good money." He smiled. "Now a pit Boss or Guy making sure the sore losers do not make a scene, that is more in y line of work." He took another drink and wondered what was taking the Cute Risan so long, the uniforms are for the accenting of a Lovely Lady right? "I think I will be employed for a while it is a steady paycheck." Blue looked around. "You have any good recommendations for a guy new on the block? Bartenders know all the best places and hear all the reviews and rages of the Station?" He raised an eyebrow. "Maybe even a place where a Lady might like to go after shift?" He liked the iniforms here to be sure.

"That's a shame, I always like to get a pretty boy out of harms way." She loaded the drinks she was pouring onto a tray, and sent out the bleep for service. "As for where a Lady might like to go after her shift? You'd have to ask the lady. Though I'd always recommend my holosuites."

"Chivalry is mortally wounded." Blue interjected. "If the Gentleman does not have some sort of an evening planned what fun for the lady is there?" Blue asked. "And with the culinary arts of this station why eat a romantic dinner where the food is regurgitated molecules to appear as the tastes it should be from the real cooking? No I prefer the real stuff when a Lady is around, hell, on ship board stuff I cook half my meals myself. No offence to your replicators but My Mamma learned to cook like a chef, I was spoiled as while we were not rich did not want in man areas and food preparation was one." He winked. "Now after dinner a romantic stroll in a Holosuite would be just the key." He gave a nod. "Treat a lady right first; maybe I am a snob, I just think the lady should be shown a good time, something to remember me by." He grinned. "My mother was a Slave Girl who met someone who treated her like she was precious, kind of a high standard I keep I guess?" He shrugged and took more of his beer.

Yolanthe went from pink to dirty yellow at the blink of an eye. "I don't serve food in the holosuites," Cheek of the boy! "All my food and drink is hand made, and if you start implying otherwise, Harry will show you the door." She pointed over Blue's shoulder to the four hundred odd kilo Gorn, looming over the wide opening to the box in his adapted tuxedo.

"I meant no disrespect." Blue countered. "I should have put in 'the typical Holsuite or Holodeck, does not compare. There was no statement about the food of the bar and I do remember complementing the real beer and atmosphere." Blue said carefully. "No need to put words in my statement, a Holosuite and the Bar are two separate entities. I apologize or a misunderstanding; I have yet to find a holosuite that is worth really visiting." He gave an award winning grin. "Let us leave judgement of your fine establishment suites for a later time." He winked. "I merely pointed out that some people try to use holosuites for 'a real date' and that is not the best use. After a bit of good food is the time to use them." He leaned closer. "You are not telling me some cheap guy did not try to use your fine establishment Holosuites to save having to do the "dining thing' as part of a date?" He winked. "Those types are not gentlemen and if I offended you by using theor example I humbly apologize again as I am quite taken with just the atmosphere here; the Beer is the best and I can only imagine the level of your Holosuites are par above any other." He nod and sat back a bit. "Now am I forgiven for a misrepresentation of opinion from the other suites that were not to your level?"

She blinked, but the yellow got a bit darker, almost ochre. His verbosity took her by surprise. Normally she faced a lot more...terseness from men who weren't drunk yet. Maybe he'd been drinking elsewhere. She wasn't entirely sure she followed everything he'd just said. "I think so?"

"Your place is above reproach and I did not mean to make it sound any less so." He hoped that simplified it. "I know few cheap skates that cut every corner when dating; I prefer to show a lady a good time and count the cost later, her enjoying the time is the goal or why else even ask a lady out?" He took another drink.

"Jealousy, revenge, carnal knowledge, for a bet," Yolanthe suggested as she started up another set of drinks. "Prove that you can, for the sheer pleasure of telling them they were shit, to get them out of their quarters so a friend can rob it, or steal their security clearance?"

The disdain was all over his face in that remark. "I don't think so." He almost snapped. "Maybe in other parts of space; maybe for a lower class of person, but there is no Honor in that when it would tarnish the the name to do so." He shook his head. "I think you need to be taken on a real night and reminded there are men who actually believe a Lady should be treated well." SHe shook his head. "Sorry, sore spot, I do not like Ladies being taken advantage of; not why I took my job; I was also raised better than that." He shrugged. "There are men out there you know; not just Males that slink around, but the real thing that actually enjoy a woman's company and would not take advantage. It is the Minority that hurt the women in many ways that give the honest guys the harder job. Try and be nice to women who expect to get burned..." He took a draft. "Not an easy thing to work with."

She raised a now violet eyebrow, "I'm not sure it was a woman who got hurt." She put another mug of beer on to a second tray, then lined up some shot glasses. "Given how passionate you seem on the subject."

"As the Lord Kermit once said." He grinned. "It is not easy being Green." HE chuckled. "My Heritage is looked kindly upon by the masses,They are not part of Federation and still seen as Pirates and thieves. The Males that is; the women are desired but not trustworthy . That one I know too well."

"You should meet my business partner." Yolanthe started pouring out a red spirit into each shot glass by eye. "She's Orion. Get her on the subject of cultural cliche. She'll bend your ear for a week."

"Not a conversation I think would come up; common ground, but she sounds like a good lady. If you picked her as a partner and a Great Bartender tends to have some eye for character." He complemented. "Besides yo have a jumping place; that means both of you are intelligent and good at business." He took a drag on his beer. "Eat your hearts out Ferengi." He chuckled.

"I'd rather they didn't." Yolanthe said primly. "I get no margin on that."

Blue laughed. "The Ferengi rule of not dealing with Females does hinder their profits more these days than when they were put into effect I think?" Blue hoped she understood his complement? "You do have a nice place; Might even become a hang out at this rate. Good beer and conversation..." Blue mused. "Got the 'Good Digs' seal of approval."

"Well thank you." Her skin was getting noticeably bluer again. "Keep up the flattery and you'll be welcome anytime. And I take good care of my regulars," The Risan waitress came over and collected her tray of beers, "Don't we, Vedra?"

"Don't we what?" Vedra asked, settling the tray on one hand. with a salacious glance at Blue.

"Take good care of our regulars."

Vedra gave Blue a knowing smile, "Absolutely. Nothing but the best." She moved off again, hips swinging like a pendulum.

To be Continued...

Yolanthe Ibalin
Proprietor, The Box of Delights

Vedra
Waitress, The Box of Delights
[NPC Notty]

1st Lt. Gordon Blue
Marine Commanding Officer

 

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