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CTO office - All the Paperwork and no increase in pay

Posted Nov. 14, 2019, 12:17 a.m. by Captain Kelly Bordeaux (Commanding Officer) (Kate O'Neill)

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Ethan Nash (Chief Tactical Officer) in CTO office - All the Paperwork and no increase in pay

Posted by Captain Kelly Bordeaux (Commanding Officer) in CTO office - All the Paperwork and no increase in pay

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Ethan Nash (Chief Tactical Officer) in CTO office - All the Paperwork and no increase in pay
Posted by… suppressed (2) by the Post Ghost! 👻

Snip

Bellatrix IV

Kelly stretched in the co-pilots seat. The beeping of the console indicated they had just dropped out of warp. “Nash,” she called out rubbing her eyes. Not seeing the man move she got louder. “Ethan. Ethan,” she recoiled at her tone. Maybe louder wasn’t better. They were going to need a dose or two of Sobe-Up soon or the still sleeping hangover friends of Headache and Nausea would be journeying with them. Kelly had no idea how much she and Nash really drank. She remembered drinking in his office. She remembered Nash getting all commanding officer like in the hangar as they appropriated the shuttle. Kelly had a vague idea of talking to him about his past which prompted more booze to come out. Nash had always been aloof, bordering on secretive about his life prior to the transfer to the Atlantis. His record held some but not all the details. Last night Kelly thought she had heard most of them but remembered none.

=/\=Bellatrix Control to Shuttle Brock. You are clear to approach on vector 119.8=/\= a voice chirped into the cockpit.

“Why in dear gods name are the neighbors yelling at us through a loudhailer?” Nash muttered as his eyes opened as if he had only been resting them for a moment. Fumbling with his tunic, he found the unlit cigar stubb in his pocket and clamped it between his teeth and automatically reached for a bottle of whiskey placed on the floor next to his seat.

“Ummmhhmmm,” Kelly winced a bit turning down the volume more. Hangover friend headache was just starting to get up. Kelly toned down the volume hoping he would go back for another forty winks. =/\=Shuttle Brock adjusted to course guidelines=/\= she responded and clicked off the call.

Nash inspected the bottle with a disappointed frown upon discovering it was empty, at the same time smacking his lips together realizing that the after drink dry mouth was in full swing.

“You look like I feel,” Kelly attempted humor as she stood and walked back to the medkit on the ship. “I am going to go throw up. Land us not in a fiery ball of death and I will bring you some Sobe up,” she ordered walking to the back of the shuttle.

Captain Kelly Bordeaux

“What’s that smell?” He complained, “Did we knock over a bottle of rum or something? Did we even bring rum? I kind of remember saluting the Captain several times but it smells more like ancient surgery on a pirate ship than a Fed vessel.”

Nash leaned forward and looked at the console, wincing and putting a hand between his eyes and the machine. “Why did someone think it was a good idea to add flashing lights to a LCARS console? I mean seriously, what’s wrong with black and white instead of Circus Afro Disco Tech?” Despite his grumbling, Nash began to bring the shuttle in for a landing while trying to work out the dry mouth on the cigar stubb.

Lt Cmdr Nash, CTO

As the ship landed Kelly and Nash departed the vessel. The grounds of the retirement home were resplendent. Golf courses, walking paths, patios, and gardens littered the landscape. People were laughing and joking as Kelly walked directly to one bungalow. Knocking on the door the woman answering got a huge smile on her face.

Nash stood to one side and looked over the lawns and homes. It was too tidy and neat for him, not enough chaos. He did, however, put the cigar stub in the corner of his mouth into his pocket before the door opened.

“Kelly Shultz Erins Shultz Bordeaux is it,” Mabel let out a laugh and embraced her.

“Mabel,” Kelly hugged her like she and the woman were relatives. “It has been a while. How are you?”

“Well the old arthritis gets me now and then but only when I need to make Reginald crazy. Enough about me. Tell me about this tall, dark, brooding one. Not typically your type,” she eyed Nash.

“But he was mine in the day,” she gave him a fiesty wink. Back in the day, it was a compliment to be compared to Reginald Perkins’s father. They say some traits skip a generation. Likeability in the male line was that trait within the Perkins household.

Nash had been about to return the greeting, then registered what she had said. “Uh, hello.” Was all he managed to say as he tried to comprehend what she had said about arthritis, making someone crazy and not being Kelly’s type.

“This is not my husband. This is Lt Commander Ethan Nash,” Kelly introduced him.

“Nice to meet you, Mrs Perkins.” Nash nodded, this time adding a smile and a nod to his greeting.

“So your single,” Mabel leaned against the door with a smirk. “What luck so am I. Want some coffee,” she asked them

Kelly Bordeaux

“No, Ma’am. Married actually,” Nash told her. There might have been some details he left out about that, his wife having been killed in a Breen attack on the colony that he had his ship destroyed protecting, for example, but at that moment Mabel didn’t need to know that. “I wouldn’t want to step on Reginald’s toes now anyhow, Ma’am, but coffee sounds fantastic.”

“So you are married,” she pointed to Nash. “And you are married,” she pointed to Kelly, “yet neither of your spouses are with you?” Mabel Perkin’s had a very mother tone to her voice. It was the tone every mother had when they were seeking the truth and everyone knew there was more to the story than anyone was sharing. “I have known this one long enough to know your spouses have got to be the smarter of the pair,” she let out a laugh. “I am sure this has to be good. Especially for you to schlep half way across the galaxy to show up at my door. Follow me,” Mabel waved them in and started moving towards the kitchen

As they headed inside Nash poked Kelly hard in the ribs after Mabel turned her back to them, he had seen her smirk. “I am not dating Perkins’ Mother or taking her out to dinner, just so we are clear Kelly.” He whispered urgently. “I’m drawing the line, got it, there’s a line, and that one is fluorescent.”

Lt Cmdr Nash, CTO

“What kinda talk is that Nash? Do we set fluorescent lines in combat? Do we say heck no we are not chasing someone into the bowels of hell to achieve a moral and right victory,” Kelly’s voice took on a dream-like tone as the hamsters began spinning so fast on the wheel in Kelly’s mind you might have been able to see smoke pouring from her ears if you looked hard enough. “This place doesn’t exactly fit the bowels of hell now does it,” she glanced around at what was the perfect old person’s home. Kelly hadn’t been to this place yet but it was warm and cozy with family pictures scattered about and throw blankets everywhere.

“No, and I am not delving into her bowels of hell either, thank you very much. Not even if our ultimate victory was to rest on it. You ever heard of a Pyrrhic Victory, Kelly?” Nash whispered with total confidence in his choice to not sacrifice all his ideals in pursuit of glory.

“Oh, that is semantics. You say Pyrrhic Victory I say marytr,” Kelly shrugged. “I say take one for the team you say,”

“So what has my idiot son done now,” Mabel cut to the chase setting out coffee and a plate of cookies.

“Wow, she’s good,” Nash said and reaching for a cookie first. “She knew what this was about before we even brought it up.”

“Nothing really we just wanted to know if you wanted a lift to his party. You know the big birthday bash he is having tonight at 2000 hours?” Kelly’s voice was innocent enough yet Mabel could see exactly through it.

Nash took a bite from the cookie, looking at the walls and pictures and playing totally innocent as well.

“The one he banned me from because I told him he looked ridiculous with that nineteen-year-old simpering waif on his arm,” Mabel shook her head. “Why is it men always want to upgrade by going down years. Anything else in life they want to go up a model but with women. With women, they seem to think the models fresh off the factory floor are what you should be aiming for when in reality a good old fashioned Plymouth that has a few years on her is far more reliable.”

“It’s the features the new models come with,” Nash said. “The older ones are usually more reliable and do the job far better but the newer models can do things that were never dreamed of in centuries past.” Like it was the most natural thing in the world, Nash took another bite of the cookie and reached for his coffee.

“I mean to take you for example,” she gestured at Kelly. “You didn’t troll the academy grounds looking for some young buck but stayed in your age range when you divorced Ric,” Maybel patted Kelly’s leg.

Nash nearly choked in the biscuit he was chewing, and the coffee splashed over the rim of his cup and burned his fingers. “Oh, crud, sorry about that. I thought you said.....” He trailed off as Kelly spoke and wiped his coffee stained fingers on his trousers and moved his foot so the coffee drips on the clean carpet were covered.

“Mmmhmmm,” Kelly drank a cup of coffee and muffled here words. The age difference was not that great but the last thing she needed from Mabel Perkins was the lecture that you should not date in your ranks or that the man was in middle school when she graduated high school.

“Ethan smokes on my ship,” Kelly immediately changed the topic knowing Mabel would direct her attention to the dark and brooding Intelligence officer.

“You wouldn’t.” Nash glared at her, then slowly looked at Mabel.

Mabel’s eyes fixed on Ethan. “Noooo,” she let out a surprised gasp. It was the gasp mothers did when they knew someone was going to possibly spin a yarn. “No one would smoke on a closed vessel where the greatest threat to a ship is fire and could snuff out a crew with a single careless flick of a stogie. Cookie,” she held out the plate to Nash.

Kelly

“Yes please,” Nash took his second cookie and took a bite. “I only smoke when I’m working.” He said, then pointed the half-cookie at Kelly. “She married her Yeoman and is old enough to be the guys Mothers younger sister.” He fired right back, Kelly needed to know her Tactical Intelligence Officer could play the game to and he didn’t take prisoners without a thorough interrogation first. “Isn’t that right Auntie Kelz?”

Lt Cmdr Nash, soon to be in Janitorial Services.

“Ah ughhh,” Kelly let out the sound only a wounded sibling made when they had been ratted out by the other sibling to deflect attention. “Nash…Nash…Nash got into a bar fight the first night we met,” she stumbled out the only thing that came to her mind. Then she thought of the cardinal sin of all sins. “He also told an eight-year-old kid there was no Santa Claus.” Kelly conveniently left off the part about his tale being so fantastic that Maybelle never believed him. That part was not important to the story.

“Am I going to have to make a pot roast,” Mabel asked looking at them both. “I mean we are running out of truth cookies and might need something more substantial as you,” she looked at Kelly, “explain exactly how young your cub is and you,” she looked at Nash, “explain why you are running around like a Smokey the Bear destroying the spirit of Christmas.” Mabel could not help but smile. She liked this pair. They had an easy relationship that wasn’t centered on rank and file.

“So are we going to keep munching on the sodium pentathiol cookies and get back to the real topic, me. M. E.,” she spelled it out then clarified. “My enjoyment. So when do we leave,” she pointed to the door. In the corner was a bag already packed. “I knew someone would come for me and my girl does not disappoint me,” Mabel patted Kelly’s leg.

“We can go now,” Kelly stood up and began to walk to the door.

“Now Ethan wasn’t it,” she checked his name even though she knew full well what it was. “Can you be a dear and grab that box with my gift for Reginald by the door while I get my purse. Kelly love can you grab my bag?”

“Sure,” she called as Mabel walked into the other room.

“Oh, and Ethan love remember to bend at the knees I would hate for you to throw out your back with that box. I know you young ‘ens always think you are indestructible but you are human.”

The box at the door was a decent size box but not one that Ethan could not hold easily size-wise in his arms. What was special about the box was the weight of it. The old joke of having a dead body in the box was not going to be lost in this scenario when Ethan picked it up. The box was solid, dense, and easily weighed a solid seventy-five pounds; however, with the lid closed, Nash would have no way to know what was in it or how heavy it would be.

Captain Kelly Bordeaux


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