Blood and Sand

Posted on 29 Jan 2023 @ 12:18pm by Petty Officer 1st Class Ember Locksley & Chief Warrant Officer 3 Lamar Darius

6,241 words; about a 31 minute read

Mission: Episode 18 - Cold Station 31
Location: USS Galileo-A - Darius' Quarters
Timeline: MD 09, 1204 hrs

[ON]

Lamar Darius woke up early after only four hours of being off-duty. His regular gamma shift bridge duty had gone smoothly with no incident, yet once back in his quarters, he'd tumbled in bed and struggled to achieve deep REM sleep. It wasn't necessarily the grind of Galileo that was at fault; he'd become accustomed to long days and short naps throughout his prior career in Starfleet's Marine Corps. There was something else on his mind now which was consuming his waking thoughts. Something trivial yet provocative, and maybe forbidden to him.

He rolled out of bed in the darkness and meandered to the sonic shower. After a couple minutes he felt refreshed, then brushed his teeth and procured some off duty clothes. A V-neck black T-shirt and gray pants were the extent of his simple wardrobe. The door to his quarters hissed open as he departed into the main corridor in search of his objective. He didn't make it far before he frowned and approached the nearest wall-mounted LCARS display.

"Computer. Locate crew member Ember Locksman."

"There is no crew member by that name located on board," came the calm reply.

Darius scratched his goatee and tried to recall the medical officer's name from the previous day. He knew she was on board, somewhere. "Computer, locate crew member Ember Locksmith. No...Locksworthy,"

"There is no crew member of either name located on board."

He threw up an exasperated hand then shook his head. "List all medical personnel present on Galileo."

There was a short pause. "Commander Allyndra illm Warraquim, chief medical officer. Chief Warrant Officer Three Alexion Wylde, medical officer. Petty Officer First Class Ember Locksley, medical officer. Petty Officer Second Class Leon--"

Finally! He knew he wasn't going crazy. Locksley. He would have to remember her name. "Computer, locate Petty Officer Locksley," he interrupted.

"Petty Officer Locksley is in her quarters. Deck 6, section 26, room 10."

"Thank you computer...!" he said over his shoulder as he quickly walked away toward the nearest turbolift. Lower decks. Should be fun.


Deck 6

The turbolift door swished open allowing Lamar to exit. He stepped out into the main corridor and briefly looked around. Deck 6 wasn't a place on the ship he'd spent much time, but the layout was similar to all the others in Galileo. He turned right and soon encountered a series of sequential doors designated for crew quarters. Room 10 wasn't difficult to locate so he checked his appearance before pressing the chime. Eyes up, smile, confidence. You got this.

Ember opened the door, meeting him with an apple that had a single bite out of it in one hand and a book in the other. "Ah, the Spartan returns," she chuckled, shaking her head lightly. "I see you survived the bat'leths..."

There she was. The red-haired doctor with the English accent he'd encountered in sickbay. She had food in her hand and a...he looked closer at the thick paper-bound item; ..a traditional book? "Bat'leths are scheduled for tomorrow. Or whenever Rice has some free time. I don't need another medical visit just yet," he grinned. "Speaking of Spartans...I was interested in your story yesterday so I've been reading up on them between shifts." He pulled out a PADD he'd concealed on the back of his belt clip to show her. "I was hoping you're free? To tell me more?"

She looked to the padd with surprise, having been half convinced he'd switched off when she'd started talking about it. And she wouldn't have blamed him. She'd found that her interest in history and archaeology was a bit more unusual in a fleet centred around science that looked forward rather than back. "It would be my pleasure," she assured, meaning it. "You can come in if you want, or we could find a table up in the mess or the bar?" she was still having to adjust to sharing. A woman of her experience from a free and wandering background, it was a struggle.

He glanced behind her head through the doorway and into her quarters. The room was compact compared to the junior officer and senior enlisted berths. "Is it just you? Any of your bunkmates inside?"

"Not at the moment, but you never know when they'll be back. It's bedroom roulette," she rolled her eyes ever so slightly, but with a small smile. "I'm way too old for this nonsense."

Lamar semi-innocently shrugged. "I'm old, too. But they gave me my own quarters. Deck 4 next to the computer cores and across from one of the science labs. Do you want a tour? I know we just met...don't want to make you jealous on the first date," he grinned.

"Come on then, make me green with envy," she sighed, shaking her head as she set her book down, but kept her apple as she left with him. "Let's look at it as giving me something to work towards..."

The two walked together down the corridor of Deck 6 and towards the turbolift. It was a short trip, and once inside the cab it was only a ten-second wait until they were deposited two floors above. Unlike the lower decks, the central primary hull areas of Galileo contained more of the ship's personnel who wandered about while on- and off-duty. They arrived in front of his quarters and he stepped forward to allow the door to part. "I haven't recycled my laundry in a week. Don't judge me," he warned.

She waved a dismissive hand at the concern, chuckling softly as she looked around with curiosity. It was still modest in size, but at least it was private. She gave a long, playful whistle, turning with a hand held out to indicate the space. "So what do you have to do to get this?"

"Well, according to the SFOPS-840 Dash Two personnel manual, you have to be a senior NCO or junior officer - or be a dependent of one. Or be married to a senior NCO or JO and ask Ops to bunk you together." He shrugged. "Probably a lot of paperwork either way." He moseyed to the sole viewport in his quarters and looked out at the streaking stars. "To tell you the truth, I miss those days when I was younger and slept in my rack with twenty other people in the barracks. This," he turned back to her waving a hand around his quarters, "is almost too much."

There was a pile of discarded clothes in one of the corners per his warning, but the room was otherwise tidy and sparsely decorated. Only a few holopics of his brother and parents adorned his desk, alongside a small medal display from his time in the Corps. The studio-esque living space revealed his bed at the far side of the room with a unique Marine phaser rifle mounted above on the wall.

"Want some water? Coffee? Raktajino?" he offered.

"Tea, please. Ceylon, hot," she drifted to watch the view, smiling gently as she folded her arms with amusement. "Well, if this is too much for you, just let me know, I'll happily swap," she teased.

Tea. He should have guessed. Judging from her accent, she was from the northwestern isles of Europe. The Kingdom of Unity, as they used to call it...or something like that. "Tea, ceylon, hot. Water, extra ice," he said to his room's replicator. The two beverages materialized alongside each other and he grabbed one in each hand before walking over to the small couch along the wall. "Make yourself at home." He sat down and handed her the steaming drink. "I don't get a lot of visitors these days. Small ship, you know?"

"Thank you," she moved to sit with him, taking in the scent of the tea before sipping it carefully. "Does that make it easier or harder, do you think?" she asked openly, settling so that the side of one arm was against the back of the sofa, and she could fully face him. "I'd have thought a small ship might make a closer community, or are you all so spread across shifts that it's more of a hindrance?"

He thought about her question for a moment. As much as his brain tried to produce a quick and definitive answer, it struggled with the intricacies. "I..." he blew a soft breath between his lips then shrugged. "Yeah we're close. Everyone knows everyone's names and we see each other in the corridors and mess hall every day. But we don't really know each other. Not like in a Marine Corps company. Shit, I have no idea what the eggheads work on in their labs - could be biogenic research that's Level 10 classified or just studying samples of random rocks we collect. They don't tell us any more than we need to know."

She nodded with understanding, able to imagine that sense of detachment alongside claustrophobia at the same time. The social circles at home hadn't been so very different, just without the part of being literally shut in a ship together. "I suspect it's rocks," she finally replied with a nod of certainty. "Or soil. I doubt you're missing much."

"I hope they're not from the Latari system...some type of baby proto-Tholian they want to experiment on." He was only half-joking and crossed one of his ankles over his kneecap while taking a sip of his water. Lamar leaned back and observed her pleasant features. "What about you? Making some friends here?"

"A couple," she replied with a tilt of the head that made the statement non-committal. "I was shut up in my quarters for three months while I recovered from the last mission. It was fantastic for catching up on reading, but less good for getting to know a new ship and crew," she admitted.

He did a subtle double-take. "Three...months? In your quarters?" He tried to suppress a laugh. "What were you reading that whole time? The entire Human genome?"

"Oh don't laugh, it was hard..." she laughed despite her words, rubbing her face as she shook her head slowly from side to side. "I know most doctors are known for making impatient patients, but I felt well and truly justified this time. I started with good intentions, to catch up on all the nonfiction books I had meant to read. It soon descended into easy reading fiction for idle minds."

He privately admired her hobby and continued to regard her closely. "Is that when you learned about the Spartans?" His PADD full of notes was still around, casually laid on the far side of the table in front of them. But as much as he'd tried to research them in his limited time, he had a feeling she was much more knowledgeable of proper academic research and discovery techniques.

"I learned about them when I was younger, my father taught me about them. He was an anthropologist, with a huge interest in ancient history," she explained with a shake of her head, smiling as she shifted to get more comfortable and cross her legs, not wanting to go into too much detail so as to bore him. "But yes, I did get time to brush up on my history while I was in recovery. I suppose that's why it was at the front of my mind when I saw you both come in, battered and bruised..." there was humour in her voice with the last, at the state they had managed to get themselves into.

Lamar returned her smile. "The L-T's pretty tough. Small, but she has heart. And some good fighting skills." It was a genuine compliment towards Galileo's new security chief. He hadn't met a lot of fleet officers who would voluntarily train in hand-to-hand combat with their former-Marine counterparts. He glanced down at his water again then took another drink before setting the glass back on the table. "She was right, you know. Medical officers don't like seeing it but sometimes training has be done raw...like the real thing." His gaze traveled across her long shapely legs and back up to her face. "You're tall and you have a good physique. I bet you could handle yourself if you needed to."

The doctor shook her head slowly with a small, knowing smile, resting an elbow on the back of the sofa. "I don't think so. It's really...not me. Fighting. Violence. It goes against everything we do in the medical profession."

"Hm," he mumbled, subtly frowning with a private dose of new embarrassment. "Bad time to tell you this, I guess...but I prepared a holodeck program for us," he confessed. "That same battle you told me about in sickbay -- Thermopile." He pointed to a couple sets of clothing hanging near the bed chamber. "I replicated us some outfits, too. Helmet, cape, wrist-guards and a loincloth for me and a white dress for you. I know...probably not the best idea for a first date." He wanted to kick himself for being too assuming.

She turned to look at the outfits with wide eyes, laughing as she moved closer for a better look. She reached out, pulling the cape out to better see the folds. "I'm impressed you even remembered half of what I was going on about. It looks pretty amazing..."

He rose from the couch and slowly followed her. He felt happy she approved of his replicas. Sure, they probably weren't completely accurate, but sometimes things got lost in translation. "I haven't had time to test them out," he admitted with modesty. "Hope I got it right." A new thought implanted itself into his mind, even if they weren't going to be slaying Persians in the holodeck together. "Do you want to try them on with me?"

"Of course!" she laughed, shaking her head. A glint of humour came to her eyes at the change of opinion from her side. "What? There's a difference between play fighting on the holodeck and the real thing."

A grin slipped across his mouth. "Are you afraid I was going to get killed and you'd have to write my eulogy?" Lamar picked up his costume and bunched it up into the tuck of his armpit. "Because I'd be honored."

"If I'm going to write your eulogy..." she unhooked the dress, draping it over her arm and hooking the sandals on a finger. "Then you're going to have to tell me about yourself, I don't really know much more than your job and your penchant for a battle royale..."

"I'm from Earth. North American continent. Philly," he casually replied before walking back to the living room table and downing the rest of his water with several gulps. "I like steaks and cheese. And Philly cheese steaks. Did ten years in the Marine Corps infantry before transferring to the Fleet. They made us ground-pounders re-certify so I decided to go into flight ops." He lightly shrugged to her with neutral body language. "It seemed like a fun job...piloting shuttles and starships. So...I've been working my way up every since I was assigned to Galileo. Did a year as COB when I first arrived and I've finally moved into conn."

"I enjoy flying," she admitted with a half smile, shaking her head. She wasn't sure why, but it seemed something of a guilty pleasure. "Have you ever flown in an old fashioned aircraft? With wings? On a planet?"

He nodded with enthusiasm and a twinkle in his dark brown eyes. "Oh yeah. In the holodeck, I mean. We did a simulation with some old 20th century flight craft about a year ago with the other conn guys here. Tomcats is what they called them...I think." His mind drifted to some of Earth's old historical movie archives. "Why? Do you want to take a ride with me?"

"Could be nice sometime," she suggested with a light shrug, smiling as she looked at the sandals to figure out how to strap them on. "I used to fly the rudimentary ones, planetside I mean. You can still find replicas. I've never flown a ship before though...obviously," she added with a chuckle at the idea of random doctors being allowed a trip around the sun.

He smiled at her, privately and with some outward expression. She seemed to possess some of the same interests he did, which was hard to find in Starfleet with its vast diversity of personnel. "You can take me for a ride next time...after Sparta," he winked. "Ready?"

"Absolutely," Ember grinned, making her way to the door with energy in her step. "Well, as ready as anyone can be coming face to face with the past, when that past happens to be formidable warriors."


Deck 5

In the corridors of Galileo's lower decks, Lamar and Ember walked together towards the holodeck dressed in elegant ancient garments. The conn officer donned two padded wrist guards which almost extended to his elbows, along with matching sandals and shin guards. His dark chest was bare aside from two shoulder straps and a bright red cape flowing across his back. His loin guard draped from his upper waist down to his mid-thighs - apparently serving as more decorative protection.

"Are you feeling the part now?" Ember asked with a knowing smile, motioning to him with awe at how striking the ensemble was. She wore a white dress, short as was the correct style, with slits on the side and the fabric draped and pinned at the shoulders. For a woman who missed the earth and the sea and the sun, being able to do things like this on a holodeck was definitely a perk that Starfleet life offered.

Lamar couldn't lie, the sensation of his new clothes and armor felt...bizarre. He'd never worn a costume like this before. Walking through the corridors dressed in all of its glory somehow connected him to the history he was attempting to replicate. This was how the Spartans - the ancients - really dressed in battle. He could feel it, viscerally. "I feel...dangerous," he replied with a wink, his right hand absentmindedly traveling to the hilt of his short sword.

He then focused his attention on her. Not just the elegant dress she wore, but how it naturally conformed across her tall physique. Her long and toned legs were exposed as were her shoulders and bare arms. The fabric accentuated her chest and revealed provocative imaginations of her curves and toned belly. "How do you feel?" he asked. "Because you look incredible."

Ember laughed warmly at the words, reaching across to hit his arm with the back of her hand as she shook her head. "This, honestly, is one of the biggest perks of being on a ship. Where else do you get to live your fantasies, hm? It's like when you used to play pretend when you're a child, only a hundred times better."

It was certainly a privilege to indulge in these small recreational moments. Especially after the death, violence and destruction in the Latari system. Lamar hadn't had access to a personal holodeck growing up like some of the other kids he'd known; he'd had to walk to the local youth center where there was always a wait time and every simulation had to be group-oriented to accommodate 10 to 20 kids at a time. Naturally, that meant mostly sports activities and the occasional hike or picnic if their parents decided to join. But on a starship, his personal holodeck time felt almost sacred. His own and no one else's. To have Ember with him sharing a common interest and holodeck time was..strangely personal to him.

When the two of them arrived in front of the holodeck, he input his program code and authorization into the door's small LCARS panel. "Simulation ready," the computer replied with its calming neutral voice. "After you, Queen Ember," he teased, bowing slightly and extending an arm for her to proceed ahead of him.

Ember moved inside, looking around with awe. The sun was fierce, beating down on the bustling camp. Sweat glistened on the skin of the men who moved with purpose in the afternoon heat, their bodies and movements holding a faint sense of tension with the threat of battle looming in the distance. They were dressed in the same striking manner as Lamar, some gathered in groups that were running through drills, well practiced, identical aggressive and defensive moves.

"King Lamar!" acknowledged one of the camp's muscular guards as Darius and Locksley approached. "And Queen Ember...we were not expecting you to join us in preparation for the battle..." He humbly acknowledged both of the new Spartans who'd entered the program. A young servant boy hustled up from the nearby distance to offer them wine and water.

Ember gave a slight half smile at that, unable to help herself. Queen; well that helped to excuse her being in the camp. This was a masculine place, reserved for warriors and leaders, all of which were men. Even then, only the elite class had such honour. The lower castes helped to keep the camp running. She nodded with gratitude as she took wine, trying it carefully. She looked to Lamar with surprise at how good it was. "Only the best for the King..."

"Theo! My man..." Lamar stepped forward and gave the guard a firm handshake then several back-pats. He turned to Ember with a small grin then whispered, "I programmed this one myself. Still working on his personality matrix. Just don't ask him for anything more than swords and shields." He accepted the wine sack from the servant and tussled the boy's short hair before the child ran off to tend to the other soldiers. "That little guy's Linus. Inspired by my little brother back when we were kids." He brought the leather flask to his lips and sipped the ancient synthehol. He grimaced ever so slightly. "...Might need to reprogram the booze."

She laughed at the reaction, shaking her head as she motioned to it. "I didn't think it was bad, all things considered. You are drinking it from animal skin, afterall," she chuckled, lifting a hand to shield her eyes from the sun as she watched the boy scurrying around the camp. "I see the likeness now! Would the real Linus be embarrassed if I said he's adorable?"

Lamar shrugged. "Yeah. He'd probably kick you in the knee," he laughed, recalling some fond memories. He tilted his flask back again and took another health drink of wine, some of it spilling down his chin and onto his chest. "Or your crotch. He was a real bundle of joy when he was a kid."

"And you?" she asked with a slight teasing edge to her voice, shaking her head as she took in the sights and sounds of the camp. It was remarkable, in its every detail. Although she suspected the scents were a lot more forgivable than the real thing would have been. "I bet you were just as much of a rascal."

Frowning with stoicism, he confidently shook his head at the notion. "Me? I was the perfect son. Never did a damn thing wrong since I turned five." He tried to maintain the ruse but was forced to wink at her before he broke character. "That's what my ma would tell you, anyway. Like she did when they interviewed her during my Starfleet entrance exam. That was...embarrassing."

She looked to him with surprise, laughing warmly before it softened into a sympathetic smile. "Oh I shouldn't worry about it. I'm sure Starfleet are used to proud mothers by now. Maybe they even thought it was cute. It sounds cute."

A new Spartan warrior interrupted their conversation as he sprinted towards them from the far end of the camp site. His chest heaved from exertion and sweat coated his face and bare chest. "Lamar!" He then nodded to the elegant queen as well. "Our scouts report that King Xerxes' forces have amassed in full...several hours march from our position. They...indulge in their wine and food as if they've already conquered us!"

Lamar raised his eyebrows with interest then glanced over to his freckled lady friend. "Doesn't sound like a bad way to do shore leave," he jokingly whispered. "Should we go fight them now, or...let them get drunk?"

"Let them get drunk," Ember whispered, but gripped his arm with a grin. "But let's climb up onto the cliff overhang!" she pointed, shielding her eyes against the sun. "I want to see them!" the sheer numbers alone were hard to fathom.

The Spartan nervously glanced between Ember and Lamar as he privately evaluated her request. "My queen...I think that is unwise." He shuffled his feet then turned to gesture to the hills from which he'd recently arrived. Xerxes' army numbers beyond the myriad - as far as the eye can see." He sighed then shook his head, his hardened features betraying his private anxiety. The scouts tell me he arrived in chariots from the gods. It won't be safe for you."

Chariots of the gods. That was a nice touch, Lamar thought to himself with reserved pride. Maybe he wasn't as bad of a holo-programmer as he originally thought. He looked to Ember then gently squeezed her hand. "Don't worry, I'll keep our queen safe," was his reply to the Spartan man. Then, to remind himself of his new in-character position, he puffed up his chest and straightened his back to appear regal. "Join us on our adventure up the hill to protect us, if you must."

The warrior hesitated for a moment, but knew better than to defy him any further. He turned, raising his spear to a nearby group that were training. He shouted swift orders, five of them stopping their unified movements to move to them, swords sheathed but spears in hand. "An honour guard then..."

Ember nodded with a smile, turning swiftly. She'd have rewired the holodeck herself if they hadn't of let her go. She led the way with a quick pace, taking to the rocky ground with sure, confident steps despite the strapped sandals. "This is a moment in time that even Klingons would appreciate..."

Lamar followed her up the rocky terrain and to the crest of the overhanging. The cliff path itself wasn't difficult to traverse, but wearing ancient shoes with thin soles was a hindrance. He could feel every rock and pebble beneath his feet and awkwardly trekked to keep pace with Ember. It didn't help his ego when several of their holographic guard detail expertly jogged past them from the rear, then moved ahead to scout for potential threats. You're losing a step, Lamar, his brain scolded him.

Ember clambered up at a good pace, even in the drapes of her dress. She was used to hiking and climbing with little to no equipment. She'd grown up exploring rough, natural terrains, without restraints, without worries from her parents, for better or worse. Moments like this helped her to feel free again, even if it was just holographic.

Now at the top of the cliff, Lamar sucked a few deep breaths of air. He smiled at Ember and took her hand, then slowly walked with her to the edge of the rocks where the honor guard was positioned. There, the Spartan scouts were watching and observing. Judging the formidable battle which awaited them in the near future. And...with good reason, fearful of the god-like chariots they'd mentioned.

The conn officer suddenly wanted to kick himself. What he saw was embarrassing to witness on his first date with the doctor -- but also fascinating. Standing at the edge of the cliff with an expansive view of the surrounding beach territory, he observed close to 100,000 enemy troops dotting the landscape as far as the eye could see. The sheer numbers of the opposing force were incredible to witness, but so were the Starfleet Marine dropshuttles which were parked on the ground in standard formation intervals. With operational precision, Xerxes' warriors exited each of the atmospheric shuttles in columns to fill the vacant ranks. Once one of the dropships was empty, it lifted off from the ground with full thrusters back towards the upper atmosphere then disappeared in the clouds.

Ember watched breathlessly at the spectacle, taking in the strange juxtaposition of glistening warriors making their entrance from modern shuttles. She started to laugh, unable to help it, shaking her head as she looked on with awe. "Now that's something you don't see everyday...." she looked to Lamar, smiling. "I wouldn't have missed this for the world...."

"Yeah...not sure how those got in here," he softly replied in a mumbled tone. The truth was far less exciting than the unexpected results. In his rush to program the holodeck simulation, he'd used a template from one of his Marine Corps combat training exercises and simply forgot to test his new version of the program before it went live. A dumb mistake by his standards, but one which his lady friend seemed to enjoy. "Well. That's a hell of an army. I mean, forgetting the shuttles," he commented. "How did they manage to feed all these people?" was his next query. "An army this size? Their logistical chain must have been massive..."

"It helped that by this point they'd taken over pretty much every land they'd set their eyes on..." she watched with awe at the scale of what was stretched out before them. "They literally had friends at their backs. They would have also used ships to help with movement of supplies. By which I mean the water kind, not the...air...shuttle...kind..."

He jabbed her playfully in her ribs with his elbow and shook his head. "Yeah, I know what boats are. Rub in it while you can." He laughed to himself with reserved composure. A quick rectification crossed his mind. "Computer, remove all orbital drop shuttles from the simulation. Replace them with sea-faring ships from Earth circa 500 BCE. Calculate and insert the amount needed to supply and reinforce the Persian Empire's entire assembled force."

There was a half-second pause before Galileo's computer chirped in reply. "Please specify parameters."

"Oh..." Ember rubbed the back of her neck in thought as she considered how to help narrow it down for the computer. "They probably would have been triremes, but of Phoenician design with bronze rams. We're looking at an army of at least 70,000 as well as their supplies and horses...."

"Calculating," said the computer in response to the doctor's elaboration. "Complete." Within the holodeck program, the Starfleet drop shuttles shimmered from existence. In their place, a new fleet of ancient sea-borne galleys materialized off the coast, numbering in the hundreds. Long and thin in form, they each possessed two prominent masts and sails which were painted in Xerxes' Persian colors. Multiple rows of oars lining the outer bulkheads of the wooden ships propelled them through the ocean's water at a surprisingly fast pace.

Ember set her hands on her hips at a job well done, smiling with awe as she took in the breathtaking scene that had shifted into vision. "What do you think? Not too shabby, hm...?"

Lamar's eyes widened when he saw the new armada of ancient wooden vessels. They were slow, cumbersome and primitive, yet still managed to project an intimidating aura of doom to even a 24th century man. He struggled to imagine what it would have been like for a contemporary to see such a fleet. "I'd probably be running for the hills if I saw them. Even with a phaser. There's so many of them..."

"Surrender was unacceptable to Spartans," she said softly, shaking her head as she watched on, following the shifts of movement. "You came back victorious or dead. Anything else was shameful to the entire family. I can't imagine such bravery. When a soldier complained that the Persians were firing so many arrows that it blotted out the sunlight, it was said the Spartan reply was that it was good news, because it meant they could fight in the shade," she glanced to him with a slight chuckle. "So perhaps there was just a little crazy in there too."

Victory. Bravery. Family shame. Fighting against all odds. It all sounded very familiar to him, albeit from a different, non-Human race. "Sounds like Klingons. Did the Spartans drink bloodwine, too?" he half-joked.

She looked to him with surprise at that before laughing, shaking her head as she enjoyed the feel of the virtual breeze and sun. "Yes, I suppose it does. You know, I think they made soup with blood in it, I'd rather not find out though."

Standing next to her, he fell into a moment of silence while he observed the sea and mountainous landscape. He, too, could feel the sea-scented wind blowing across his face and the warmth from the artificial environment. Holodecks truly were capable of creating amazing experiences. Lamar decided to sit down on the rocks of the cliff's edge to enjoy the view some more. After he crossed his legs, he looked up to Ember and patted a warm stone next to him with invitation. "This is...fun."

She smiled as she moved to sit with him, looking to him with a soft laugh. "Think you might change your piloting speciality?" she teased lightly. "I'm sure Starfleet could be convinced to build a fleet of sea vessels."

He smirked then play-frowned and gave a nudge against her shoulder. "Com'on now. Nothing beats flying in space." He proceeded to consider the question with a little more veracity than his initial teasing reply conveyed. "And why would Starfleet make boats again? There's nothing on the waters that we can't see from a shuttle. Even the deep sea exploration division use shuttles too. Well, special variants. But still." He waved an open hand to the Persian landing force approaching the beach head in the distance. "They're so...slow." Lamar adamantly shook his head. "Too primitive for my tastes. Should have asked me a quincentenary ago."

"But sometimes the journey *is* the journey," she laughed softly, giving him a sidelong glance. "Taming the open waters with nothing but your bare hands and wit. Never knowing what the next day will bring..." she suddenly pointed to him. "If you say scurvy, shame on you," she teased.

Lamar innocently shrugged. "Whatever you say, Doc Shirley." The wordplay was subtle but the real heart of the joke was their similar tall and ginger-haired appearances. And the fact that one of them was an incessantly grumpy hologram. He sighed contently to himself then looked into Ember's blue eyes. The impending lull in the conversation and the beautiful scenery afforded him a rare opportunity. Without thinking too much, he scooted a few inches closer to her then put a hand on her thigh. His head tilted slightly as he leaned in and pressed his lips against hers.

She blinked with surprise, stilling with the kiss as she held his hand. She searched his eyes as the kiss ended, smiling softly before chuckling gently. "Easy tiger," she said with a gentle smile. "You hardly know me."

He pulled back then produced a small grin. That was... Calming? Satisfying? Amazing? An amalgamation of all three with a heavy dose of confection attached? "I know. That's what makes it exciting," he grinned then looked down at their fingers intertwined near her lap. "If I fight Xerxes in this big battle, will I earn your approval?" He offered. "Or do you want me to catch some wild board and roast them over the grill while we watch? Because I can do both." He wasn't sure he could do either, but he felt confident wearing his Spartan armor.

Ember laughed at the bold claims, shaking her head with disbelief. "Well I think you have the brazenness of a Spartan at least. I think you can't come all this way and *not* take down the tyrant, hm?"

He conceded her point with a light head tilt and a nod. "True. Fine, I'll take him down. But what are you going to do when I'm fighting? Watch from up here and record me wearing my stupid helmet?" The primitive piece of armor didn't really look suave to him. It was heavy, poor fitting, and had too-small eye holes limiting his vision.

"From up here? I don't think so..." she climbed to her feet, offering a hand down to help him up. "I'm going to be on the sidelines, I want to see this fight up close, in all its glory."

Lamar took her hand and pulled himself up before readjusting his armor. "Queen Ember," he stood tall and tried to act the part, "I will ensure victory for all of the Federation--," he shook his head and corrected his mistake, "--for all of Sparta!" He tried to keep a straight face but even as he donned his helmet, he was grinning from ear to ear.

[OFF]

--

CWO3 Lamar Darius
Conn Officer
USS Galileo-A
[PNPC Saalm]

Dr. Ember Locksley
Medical
USS Galileo-A
[PNPC Blake]

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