BACKSIM: JP: Lieutenant Drex & Lieutenant JG Stendhal - Fleeting Moment (Part 1)
KRN STDL
Drex was sitting at a table in the small bar that overlooked the upper promenade. From the side he was on, the view from the windows was a boring landscape, an infinite black blanket studded with stars. No planets, no nebulas, no visible phenomenon worthy of note broke the monotony. Drex had observed that piece of space for a few hours, immersed in his thoughts, re-living Ayra's wedding in his head.
It had been a simple ceremony, almost in contrast with the character he knew of her sister, but totally in line with what he knew of her new husband. Ayra had given up her luxury to please him, without demanding a compromise. She must have been madly in love or hit her head.
His visit to Kalus had lasted too short, he had only decided at the last minute, after the ceremony at the end of the mission, to attend the wedding in person and therefore he had arrived home only two days before the big event, only to leave the next day still dazed from alcohol and food.
He looked away from the window, looking for a waiter or waitress to replace his empty glass. The customers had changed since the last order he had placed. The family of Trill, whose little boys had screamed so loud for a good twenty minutes, had left, and also the huge Klingon who sat by himself in a corner was nowhere to be seen now.. Drex had never seen a Klingon so tall. He had taken out his drawing notebook and he had even drawn the first few lines, before realizing that to make a good portrait he would have to stare at the warrior for a long time, and he was not sure he had a strong enough dialectic to prevail with a Klingon.
While he waited for the waitress to return with his order, Drex found a better model for his portraits.
A woman, probably human, was sitting two tables away. She was looking at the stars, but something made Drex think she wasn't really seeing them.
oO A spicio for her thoughts... Oo
Drex grabbed the pencil and let his hand run freely on the paper.
Karen sat there at the table, lost in thought, gazing out at the stars through the large panoramic window.
She hadn't ordered anything yet, and at that moment she was simply lost in her own thoughts. After a long LOA (Leave of Absence), she had been reassigned to SB 118 and was transferred on a new ship, the USS OEB.
All those acronyms...
A tingling sensation ran down the back of her neck. Her Betazoid sixth sense was telling her something was up. She felt watched, as if someone was offering a penny for her thoughts. Never had an investment been so poor!
Karen turned around to see who had made that proverbial and curious mentally monetary offer.
Two tables away, an unexpected artist was observing her to sketch her. This had certainly never happened to her before. She took a closer look. Was it a denobulan?
Stendhal: Galven?
Something had distracted his model. Could have been the crystalline laugh of the young lady who just entered the local or the scent of Calindra stew escaped from the bowl carried by the waitress. Drex spied her while she was seeking the area, until her eyes stopped on him.
Drex: Pardon me? :: The word she pronounced had no meaning for him.::
Karen looked again, fearing that she might be developing premature myopia.
oO No, it wasn't Galven. Galven was part human. Oo
A few years earlier, German Galven had made a pass at her on Station SB 118, but the fact was that she didn't fancy Denobulans. At least not in that way. As colleagues, of course, there was no problem.
Karen rose from her seat and approached Drex, keeping a comfortable distance between them. Her intuition told her that he wasn't one for handshakes.
An inexplicable sense of familiarity washed over her, as if she had known him for years.
Maintaining a courteous and prudent social distance, she extended a warm greeting.
Stendhal: Good morning, I'm Stendhal, Karen Stendhal.
Drex: Good morning to you, Karen Stendhal :: He replied with a courtes smile. :: I'm Drex, just Drex :: His smile widened and his eyes sparkled with amusement. ::
Karen playfully extended her hand, palm facing up.
Stendhal: Actually, I wasn't thinking of anything. Where's my florin? (Fiorino credo)
The Denobulan looked at her empty hand. He dropped the pencil on the table.
oO How'd you know? Oo
Drex: I'm afraid my pockets are empty at the moment. :: He patted his trousers :: but…
He looked back at her face and he handed her the notebook with his sketches.
Drex: Maybe something in here can pay for it.
It was arrogant of him to think that some drawing of his could be worth as much as an ancient Earth coin, perhaps he would have been better off buying her a drink.
Stendhal: What a lovely sketch! I'm truly flattered. Not many people still use real pencils and paper these days...
Drex: If you like any of them, please take it. But that one :: Pointing at her portrait :: ain't finished yet. But you can have all the landscapes.
The notebook did not contain many drawings, and many of that few were unfinished. Only the skyline of the Administrative District of Denali and three portraits were completed. The drawings were in grayscale, and they showed an Andorian and two Human women, all of them wearing the uniform of Starfleet.
Karen calmly and attentively observed Drex's beautiful drawings, which were artistically truly impressive to her. They were something more than a simple photograph or a holographic reproduction or other AI-generated computer image.
The landscapes especially, she didn't recognize those places, were they cities on the planet Denobula? Or perhaps, more likely, it was the place where Drex worked! She raised her hand to her chin, clearly thinking about it.
Stendhal: Very beautiful indeed, I wouldn't know which one to choose!
The ladies, especially that one with the striking eyes, she really has something familiar. Also the other one is familiar to me.
There's a knowingness in her gaze that reminds me of someone, but I can't quite place it, for now. Maybe after a drink.
She smiled.
Drex: Those? They belong to these ladies. :: He replied with a gentle tone ::
oO And they don't know I have them. Oo
Stendhal: I understand, you must be a popular artist in your home world.
Karen glared at Drex and then at the drawings again.
Drex: No :: He chuckled :: not at all. These kinds of drawings, I don't make them public. But I must admit, you have a good eye, maybe you're an artist yourself?
The Denobulan was in a good mood, and joking came easily to him, although he didn't know the woman. There was something in her attitude that pushed Drex to feel comfortable about playing with her a little.
Stendhal: I actually paint sometimes too! But my style is completely different. I focus on abstract art, think splashes of color, lines, and shapes, rather than realistic depictions.
Drex: Do you happen to have any of your work here with you? :: He was serious about it ::
He loved to engage with others, not just artists. It had happened to him more than once that the point of view of others and their interpretative style helped him to understand the problem he was facing.
Drex studied the half human, he would try to finish her portrait later and wanted to fix her image in his mind. She was analyzing his sketches and seemed sincerely interested.
Stendhal: Wow, your drawing technique is really impressive! I especially love the way you shaded the hairs of that lady.
Drex looked carefully at the draw. He had struggled several hours to figured out was he was missing, but he had to give up in the end.
Suddenly Karen's stomach made weird noises.
Stendhal: By the way, I originally came here for the food. I hear they have some great dishes, and I was hoping to grab a tea as well.
Drex invited Karen to sit moving his left hand and a jovial smile.
Drex: Please, have a seat and, if you like, something to drink or eat. Or both. :: Then he took the portrait of the Human wearing the Commander pins :: They're all Starfleet officers, yes. These are… well some experiments to test my memory. So, I said they are finished, but I may be laying :: He chuckled ::
He turned and raised a hand to call the waitress.
Stendhal: That Commander! She looks like a person that I know called Alora, where did you meet her if I can ask?
She continued talking as she sat at Drex's table.
Could Alora be a very common name on Earth? He could not tell, but even so, how many Alora were Commander for the Starfleet?
Drex: Commander Alora DeVeau? :: He asked for confirm :: She is the chief of the science division on Denali Station and my boss.
Stendhal: Oh what a coincidence! The Universe is small isn't it?
Drex: Yeah… :: He commented thoughtfully :: How do you know her? Are you a science officer for Starfleet?
Stendhal: Nope I'm a counselor and Alora was the scientific officer with me at Star base 118.
Drex: A counselor? ::.He took a deep breath ::
oO At least she's human, isn't she? Oo
The Denobulan bent slightly to scan Karen's eyes.
oO Not Betazoid at least… Oo
Stendhal: In fact, I'm also qualified as a medical officer, and for a while I was one of the doctors at the 118 Starvase. Maybe I should have stuck with that. I'm not much of a psychologist, you know.
Karen reflected on those two sessions with Alora, which had been quite a disaster. In the first, she had talked too much about herself and her opinions on the Borg, and in the second, they had ended up eating at the Nebula Café.
Drex smiled, relaxing. He was not xenophobic, but the ability of some people to read into his soul made him very uncomfortable. Not that he had many secrets, besides his habit to talk alone (and with the thought of his sister).
Drex: I visited Earth a little while I was in the Academy. :: He had decided she had to be Human :: Where are you from?
============
Science Officer
Denali Station
D240011D14
&
Lt Jg Karen Trisha Stendhal
Counselor
USS Octavia E Butler
C239604KS0
Counselor
USS Octavia E Butler
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