Columbus Stories 1.4 - 'Twas A Very Columbus Christmas

[Auzual Knox]

[Puzzles]

NPC Deg'arf

"To the General!"

Tankards clanked spilling Blood wine before being drained.

"To the K'tomok, may she always be victorious!"

More filled tankards were passed around, spilt and drained.

"To the Empire!"

And, even more blood wine was shared, spilt and drunk. Various victories were discussed, various fallen warriors were honored. And, various songs were sung. It was a festive time on the Station and the Klingons were certainly enjoying themselves.

"Qapla!"

Deg'arf put his tankard down, whilst the rest of the Klingons laughed and continued to drink heavily and walked towards the end of the bar.

[Puzzles: Leanna's Office]

The somewhat intoxicated Klingon stumbled into a room that was not very brightly lit and proceeded to fumble with his armor. For a moment he thought his eyes were deceiving him. But no, somehow he found himself opposite a rather beautiful young woman. He momentarily forgot himself and then asked -

"nuqDaq Á¢â,¬ËœoH puchpa"e'?"

[Felicity Ellis]

[Puzzles]

" I believe that we do so bare with me a moment and I'll go get you it"she said and walked a short distance down to where the majority of the whiskeys were stored and looked through the colourful bottles of different sizes finding what she needed in the middle of the shelf. Picking it up she returned to the officer and placed a glass in front of her then poured her a glass from the hardly used bottle. " There we go and your in the right place for that " she said smiling understanding the conspiratorial wink.

"Great!" She responded eagerly, grateful that her favoured drink might be available, and that the bartender was willing to humour her. Her eyes followed the elf as she perused the impressive array of bottles. Felicity leaned forward on the bar counter, her forearms crossed as the whiskey was produced and poured generously into a glass.

She grinned as she brought it to her lips and took a taste. Her eyes closed for a moment as the taste hit her tongue and the whiskey burned its way down her throat. She sucked in a breath, savouring the sensation and opened her eyes. "My hero." Felicity figured she could be as bombastic as she liked; it was Christmas after all.

He looked over to the human beside him. She must have been new to the Station as he did not recognize her. They appeared to be the only two not seemingly involved in the rest of the festivities around them.

"We prefer to fight our sorrows."

He said, though not making eye contact.

She arched a brow at the words and angled her body toward the voice, intending to get a better look at its Klingon owner. She had noticed a number of Klingon visitors during her stroll through the Promenade, but this one appeared to not be participating in the revelries and was propping up the bar, much like herself.

She glanced away and studied her glass of whiskey, swirling it slightly in the glass with small, controlled movements of her wrist. "I may end up fighting my sorrows yet. But first, let's see if they can swim."

The glass in front of him was empty. Felicity gestured toward the whiskey bottle with a wave of her hand. "You're more than welcome to join me in my experiment."

[Leanna Mazal]

[Puzzles: Leanna's Office]

The somewhat intoxicated Klingon stumbled into a room that was not very brightly lit and proceeded to fumble with his armor. For a moment he thought his eyes were deceiving him. But no, somehow he found himself opposite a rather beautiful young woman. He momentarily forgot himself and then asked -

"nuqDaq Á¢â,¬ËœoH puchpa"e'?"

[Puzzles]

"Great!" She responded eagerly, grateful that her favoured drink might be available, and that the bartender was willing to humour her. Her eyes followed the elf as she perused the impressive array of bottles. Felicity leaned forward on the bar counter, her forearms crossed as the whiskey was produced and poured generously into a glass.

She grinned as she brought it to her lips and took a taste. Her eyes closed for a moment as the taste hit her tongue and the whiskey burned its way down her throat. She sucked in a breath, savouring the sensation and opened her eyes. "My hero." Felicity figured she could be as bombastic as she liked; it was Christmas after all.

[Puzzles - Leanna's Office]

When the door to her office opened and clearly very intoxicated Klingon appeared, Leanna thought she was imagining things at first as he looked familiar and for a brief second he reminded her of Mortock her lover from Argellian Four before she had met Matthias. Then again it couldn't be when Mortock was very much loved up with his equally loving wife back on the Klingon homeworld and maybe it was because of her heightened emotions and willingness for things to stop hurting that had made her think of him or perhaps this was some kind of mirage.

However as soon as he looked at her and spoke she realised he was real and didn't know whether to laugh or be angry. Sitting up to get a better look at him and his armour that was in slight disarray before answering him not needing the universal translator to know what he was asking.

" The bathrooms are on the other side of the bar " she replied " However seeing as your here and might not make it, your welcome to use my private one through that door " she said pointing to a   door on the left. She didn't know why but she couldn't see him having to go back into the bar and look foolish for stumbling into her office instead of the bathroom.

[Main Bar]

Maggie heard the Klingon slam his glass down on the counter, demanding another drink as the officer called her a hero after taking a drink of the whiskey. She smiled and poured another grape juice handing it over as the two began to talk and spoke only once as she didn't want to interrupt too much. " Just give me a shout if you both need anything else"she said and left them to their conversation.

[Auzual Knox]

[Puzzles]

Ch'pok

She glanced away and studied her glass of whiskey, swirling it slightly in the glass with small, controlled movements of her wrist. "I may end up fighting my sorrows yet. But first, let's see if they can swim."

The glass in front of him was empty. Felicity gestured toward the whiskey bottle with a wave of her hand. "You're more than welcome to join me in my experiment."

A long pause passed between them. In fact a moment of silence that was several minutes longer than it should have been. And then Ch'pok roared with laughter. And, for some reason coming from him, it was more than a little unsettling. He made eye contact and exclaimed -

"Jlyaj!"

He repositioned himself and his empty glass closer to the woman, took the bottle, poured a rather large measure of the golden liquid for himself and topping up his drinking / drowning partner's glass.

"I do not know this Earth drink. Perhaps it is strong enough to 'drown' her?"

"Why are you not with the others? Do you not like this tradition?"

Ch'pok was not used to making small talk. He was a strong Klingon warrior who unfortunately felt weak.

"Qapla!"

[Main Bar]
"Just give me a shout if you both need anything else"she said and left them to their conversation.

"Maj. Thank you."

It sounded like 'thank you' was not a phrase he was accustomed to using very often.

[Puzzles: Leanna's office]

Deg'arf

" The bathrooms are on the other side of the bar " she replied " However seeing as your here and might not make it, your welcome to use my private one through that door " she said pointing to a door on the left. She didn't know why but she couldn't see him having to go back into the bar and look foolish for stumbling into her office instead of the bathroom.

He had literally nearly begun relieving himself right there and was finding the strain to reposition himself within his armor somewhat uncomfortable as he tried to avert the woman's gaze. As such he decided to simply remove the top part and placed it over a chair opposite her, leaning in to say -

"That would be ... convenient."

Several moments later he returned from Leanna's bathroom, somewhat sober. Droplets of water dripping from his face to his chest. He looked back to the woman and stood tall.

"I am Deg'arf. Son of B'mar."

He said in a manner that sounded as if he expected her to know what it meant.

"And who do I have the pleasure of meeting? Why are you in here alone?! Come - celebrate with us!"

[Leanna Mazal]

[Puzzles: Leanna's office]

Deg'arf

He had literally nearly begun relieving himself right there and was finding the strain to reposition himself within his armor somewhat uncomfortable as he tried to avert the woman's gaze. As such he decided to simply remove the top part and placed it over a chair opposite her, leaning in to say -

"That would be ... convenient."

Several moments later he returned from Leanna's bathroom, somewhat sober. Droplets of water dripping from his face to his chest. He looked back to the woman and stood tall.

"I am Deg'arf. Son of B'mar."

He said in a manner that sounded as if he expected her to know what it meant.

"And who do I have the pleasure of meeting? Why are you in here alone?! Come - celebrate with us!"

[Puzzles - Leanna's Office]

It had been obvious what he had almost tried to do in her office and seeing him try to avert her gaze was amusing in a way but she wasn't about to break eye contact just yet as he then removed the top part of his armour before placing it over a chair opposite her. Feeling the heat and strength emanating from him as he then leaned in and told her that it would be convenient.

Somehow left rooted to the spot as he went into her bathroom and tried to clear her mind wondering what had just exactly happened and was still sat on the sofa when he returned several moments later and she noticed the water dripping from his face to his chest.

Taking a deep breath as he then looked at her once more and stood tall, realising that she must look a right state in her leisure wear with her hair tied up and red patches on her face from crying and it wasn't the ideal way of meeting someone for the first time especially when he introduced himself and could hear the pride in his voice. But for some reason that didn't seem to matter and when he then asked those questions had no problem answering them although wasn't sure about joining him then again knew how not to upset a Klingon and their ways especially when it came to celebrating.

" My name's Leanna, I'm the owner of this bar and I'm here alone because I haven't been myself lately especially after losing a good friend" she replied " I would love too but I'm not exactly dressed properly or look like my usual self " she admitted wondering if she should change and if she had the energy to do so.

[Auzual Knox]

[Puzzles - Leanna's Office]

Deg'arf

" My name's Leanna, I'm the owner of this bar and I'm here alone because I haven't been myself lately especially after losing a good friend" she replied " I would love too but I'm not exactly dressed properly or look like my usual self " she admitted wondering if she should change and if she had the energy to do so.

"Leanna."

He said, stressing the 'a' at the end to 'ahhhhh'.

"You must join us for your friend's sake. He died in glorious battle protecting those he loved. I am sure. And as you do not look your usual self, at least you shall be left alone from those you are trying to avoid in here."

He gave her a certain look to say, I shall protect you, and then took the gold and beige Tholian silk shawl draped over the chair next to his armor. He walked towards Leanna, wrapped it around her shoulders, touched the redness on her cheek and then held out his hand.

"Come. We honour the fallen tonight. Your friend's name shall be sung along side the others."

[Naira]

[Naira's Guest Quarters]

General Yoduk

The blood wine and the good news had taken over General Yoduk's senses. He was enthralled and could not hold back any longer.

"HAH! Of course! No more talk!"

He had watched Naira's lips move however translated in his mother tongue, she had said something resembling 'let's enjoy each other right now and discuss the details another time'.

[Naira's Guest Quarters]

Sometime Later

After pulling her dress back on, Naira sat up on the edge of the bed and attempted to fix her hair. She still didn't know how she was going to broach the subject on what needed to be said, but she bought herself some more time.

Yoduk yawned, stretched, scratched himself and attempted to pull her back down under the covers, but she sat just out of his reach. With a groan, he crawled across the bed and rose to sit behind her, arms wrapped around her abdomen and rested his head on her shoulder.

"We should eat. You are too tiny. I want to know that you are feeding my son, real food, not those things you drink that smell like grass and taste like dirt. My wives were much larger this far along."

"Your wives were also Klingon."

She placed her hands over his.

"I've searched the Federation Database, but there is surprisingly little information on Klingon/Orion hybrids. Some sources even claimed it wasn't possible. I've thought about asking a source through my mother to look into it as I find it hard to believe for as long as our two species have been in contact that this isn't something better documented. However, it's difficult to access Orion resources without tipping off someone in the Syndicate. What I do know however, is that this gestation could take anywhere between six and eighteen months."

"Eighteen months!" He sat up straight. "It's no wonder your people lack warriors and resort to cowardly acts of deception, you could birth three Klingon sons in that time."

She tried not to take his words personally. He knew well enough that she was in no way connected to the Syndicate or endorsed their actions, but it had been bred in him from a cultural standpoint to view all Orions as 'her people', while in some way all Klingons were 'his people'. While there were certainly individuals that he may not like, not to mention the complex dynamic between houses, he felt a strong sense of kinship to all members of his species which was something she found both strange and fascinating.

She stood up from the bed and readjusted the hemline of her dress. "Why do you keep referring to it as 'your son'?"

"Do you deny it?" He arched his bushy eyebrows and ran his fingers through his long, greying beard.

"No, I just find it curious that you would make such an assumption."

His serious expression was replaced with a smile once more as he leaped out of bed and rushed to dress himself.

"Come, we need to celebrate. Ch'pok will want to know and we should tell your captain...former captain" he corrected himself.

"I don't think he'll want to hear that..." her words trailed off as she followed him out the door.

[Outside the Starbase Chapel]

"This is a bad idea," she tried to persuade him, but there was no talking him down when he had his mind set. Granted, she was the same way, but he didn't want to listen to reason.

He threw open the large doors as he marched into the otherwise somber room. A handful of attendants either sat in silence or quietly uttered prayers as the old Vulcan continued his sermon. In stark contrast, his metal armor and heavy footfalls clanked and raffled with each step he took.

"Captain, here you are!" The loud Klingon nearly shouted as he threw his arms up into the air and ushered for the other man to get up and join him. "Come, celebrate with us."

Naira meanwhile hung back by the door looking mortified that the General would put on such a public display and involve her in the middle of it.

[Leanna Mazal]

[Puzzles - Leanna's Office]

Deg'arf

"Leanna."

He said, stressing the 'a' at the end to 'ahhhhh'.

"You must join us for your friend's sake. He died in glorious battle protecting those he loved. I am sure. And as you do not look your usual self, at least you shall be left alone from those you are trying to avoid in here."

He gave her a certain look to say, I shall protect you, and then took the gold and beige Tholian silk shawl draped over the chair next to his armor. He walked towards Leanna, wrapped it around her shoulders, touched the redness on her cheek and then held out his hand.

"Come. We honour the fallen tonight. Your friend's name shall be sung along side the others."

[Puzzles - Leanna's Office]

The way he said her name gave her the kind of goosebumps she hadn't felt in a long time, finding herself completely captivated by this stranger who had mistaken her office for a bathroom but now it felt as though it had happened for a reason. Listening to his words and it brought back memories of not only Mook but of Mortock and how both had protected her in their own way. The look he then gave her to say he would protect her too made her smile for the first time in days and she believed him.

Unsure what he was going to do next until he picked up the Tholian silk shawl and draped across her shoulders, his touch electrifying when he touched her cheek and held out his hand. " How could I not say no to those words of wisdom and yes we shall honour him amongst the others" she replied softly standing up and taking hold of his hand.

[Felicity Ellis]

[Puzzles]

Ch'pok

A long pause passed between them. In fact a moment of silence that was several minutes longer than it should have been. And then Ch'pok roared with laughter. And, for some reason coming from him, it was more than a little unsettling. He made eye contact and exclaimed -

"Jlyaj!"

He repositioned himself and his empty glass closer to the woman, took the bottle, poured a rather large measure of the golden liquid for himself and topping up his drinking / drowning partner's glass.

"I do not know this Earth drink. Perhaps it is strong enough to 'drown' her?"

"Why are you not with the others? Do you not like this tradition?"

Ch'pok was not used to making small talk. He was a strong Klingon warrior who unfortunately felt weak.

"Qapla!"

[Puzzles]

For a moment, during that long pause, Felicity thought she might have angered the man, and when he exploded in a roar of laughter, she almost mistook the sound for something else entirely. She flinched in reaction to the noise and blinked rapidly several times, before realisation dawned that it was, in fact, a glad sound, and her smile returned. From broody to boisterous in less than three seconds.

He moved closer and appeared to accept her offer when he filled his glass and topped her own up. She plucked the glass from the bar again, her brows lifting a little at his mention of a 'her'. Ah, woman trouble. "It's called whiskey," she explained, "And it is strong enough by Earth standards to drown most things; though people have a rather annoying tendency to reappear the following morning."

She pursed her mouth for a moment, considering his next question and eventually shrugged her shoulders. "I like Christmas well enough, there's presents and singing and... whiskey," she held her glass aloft to cheers in response to his hearty 'Qapla!' and hastily downed it in one. Inside, a part of her cringed at the speedy consumption; a good whiskey should be savoured. She was, however, currently drinking with a Klingon, so she was fairly certain the Booze Gods would forgive her.

She picked up the bottle, ready to refill their glasses for another round, but not before nodding and smiling her thanks to their helpful elfish bartender. "I'm pretty new here," she continued in response to him, "So I don't know very many people yet. What's your excuse?" It was a pointed question, not exactly her style, though she felt her audience might receive it a little better than most.

[Jenna McKinson]

[ Puzzles - Eliana ]

Eliana was humming to herself. Her shift was about to be over and she was going to meet Lissy and Sorcha for a night out with Sorcha's boyfriend. It was going to be a double date. She hummed to herself. She looked over to Marcus and smiled."Alright it's quitting time for me. Marcus don't drive Rixxy too crazy," Eliana said. Marcus laughed and shook his head.

[ Promenade ]

Sorcha and Lissy were walking along headed to meet Puzzles. Lissy smirked as things were finally coming into place. She was very glad to have met and been going out with Eliana. However, her plans were clouding her judgement. She found herself in the midst of Mr. M. She has struck an accord to get at Jenna. This was something she wanted deeply after that locket that she legally, though though shady terms, was taken from her. Nothing was going to stop her from making Jenna pay.

"Tonight is the night Sorcha. The stars have finally aligned," Lissy said with a rather happy tone. Sorcha, though loyal to Lissy to a fault, was none too happy with her plan. "Not to rain on your parade, but you know how he acts. What's to say he wont betray you?" Sorcha asked. "Just trust the plan. Jenna is going to pay for what she did. It was only a matter of time. Mr. M. and I agreed that we think alike. Now we can get Eliana involved. With all our combined resources, we can make her pay," Lissy said. "Eliana is a good woman. I know you love her, but you shouldn't let your hatred blind you,"Sorcha said. "Since when did you get sensible?" Lissy asked.

Sorcha just shook her head. She had a bad feeling about the whole situation. However, she knew she needed to be near Lissy in order for her not to harm herself. She waited outside of Puzzles as Lissy walked in to greet Eliana. Eliana and Lissy walked out of Puzzles."We need to go meet Sorcha's beaux over at his job. Luckily we can skip the bouncers and get right in."

The group walked for a while. Lissy held Eliana's hand. She did care for the woman she was dating, but there was something more at stake than just this relationship. Lissy smiled as she pressed the code and scanned her card to get into the establishment. "What's this place called?"Eliana asked. "The Landing Strip," Sorcha replied.

[ The Landing Strip - Basement ]

Eliana got the sneaking suspicion that things were not as they seemed. As the room came into view, Eliana's palms sweated. Before she knew it she felt the presence of others. "Excellent our guest has arrived. Welcome to the Landing Strip Eliana. I am Mr. M," Mr. M. said. Eliana knew things were bad. "H-h-how do you know my name?" Eliana asked. "That is of no matter. I believe you can help our cause. You see I have a bone to pick with a certain engineer here on the station. She took down my best man. It's a damn shame he had to be clapped. Lissy and Sorcha shared my same inclination toward her. Seeing as you had close knowledge it seemed like you could be an asset,"Mr. M. stated. "Look if this is about Jenna, I do care for her yes. However, I was mad at her new fling at first. I am just now getting over that because I now have someone new. I do not want any part of this. Lissy I demand you get me out of here I am not comfortable," Eliana said.

Lissy nor Sorcha moved. Eliana then began to switch into her survival mode. She dropped Lissy's hands and made quick toward the direction they came from. She then screamed in terror. "You see my dear. This was merely a meeting to see if you would go willingly. Seeing as you won't, which I guessed so, you will now need persuasion. Fuller inject her,"Mr. M. said. "No... Jenna Molly.... Please... No... Please don't be on the station," Eliana said crying before she felt something pierce her skin and her memories and perception became cloudy.

[ The Tea Shoppe - Jenna]

Jenna was finally glad to have some off time to meet T'Prina for tea. Though she had heard of the place before, this was her first time there. "I like this place T'Prina, but I think they went a little overboard with the decorations,"Jenna said. Though she tolerated Christmas, it was always an uneasy time of year for her. She never told anyone why, but she felt is the time was right she would. That time never came up.

[Auzual Knox]

[Puzzles]

Ch'pok

She plucked the glass from the bar again, her brows lifting a little at his mention of a 'her'. Ah, woman trouble. "It's called whiskey," she explained, "And it is strong enough by Earth standards to drown most things; though people have a rather annoying tendency to reappear the following morning."

She pursed her mouth for a moment, considering his next question and eventually shrugged her shoulders. "I like Christmas well enough, there's presents and singing and... whiskey," she held her glass aloft to cheers in response to his hearty 'Qapla!' and hastily downed it in one. Inside, a part of her cringed at the speedy consumption; a good whiskey should be savoured. She was, however, currently drinking with a Klingon, so she was fairly certain the Booze Gods would forgive her.

She picked up the bottle, ready to refill their glasses for another round, but not before nodding and smiling her thanks to their helpful elfish bartender. "I'm pretty new here," she continued in response to him, "So I don't know very many people yet. What's your excuse?" It was a pointed question, not exactly her style, though she felt her audience might receive it a little better than most.

"Whissss Key."

He drained his glass, appreciating the gesture and the company.

"Yes. They do."

Ahhhhhhhhhhhh. My excuse? Well, I am here alone as that infuriating woman is in Ops. We should be discussing the wedding. She tells me that she has been married three times previously. That the last ended badly. At least a couple of lifetimes ago, at least. Argh. Par'Mach!

"I do not socialize."

He took the second filled glass and drained it.

"You are new here."

What does she do other than drown her sorrows in whisss key? Curious.

"Whom have you drowned?"

His lips betraying a slight smile of interest and enjoyment in the conversation.

[Felicity Ellis]

[Puzzles]

Ch'pok

"Whissss Key."

He drained his glass, appreciating the gesture and the company.

"Yes. They do."

Ahhhhhhhhhhhh. My excuse? Well, I am here alone as that infuriating woman is in Ops. We should be discussing the wedding. She tells me that she has been married three times previously. That the last ended badly. At least a couple of lifetimes ago, at least. Argh. Par'Mach!

"I do not socialize."

He took the second filled glass and drained it.

"You are new here."

What does she do other than drown her sorrows in whisss key? Curious.

"Whom have you drowned?"

His lips betraying a slight smile of interest and enjoyment in the conversation.

[Puzzles]

Felicity could not help but chuckle at the question. She was finding her Klingon drinking buddy entirely interesting; what with his assertion that he did not socialize, but his willingness to be sociable with her while sharing a whiskey or two. She considered for a moment before answering. Aside from the more difficult members of her family, there had been one or two others she'd attempted to drown. One particular erstwhile lover sprang to mind while she polished off her second glass.

"Well... there was this bloke I was seeing back when I was at the Academy. Tall, dark, handsome... Physique like it was carved by the gods themselves. Not the most giving in the bedroom department, all told, but pretty adventurous, if you catch my drift." The whiskey was beginning to loosen her tongue, she realised, a rock could catch her drift at this stage. "Things were going well. He met my parents, which is no small undertaking, let me tell you, my parents are a nightmare. So I begin to think that we might just have a future together." She was in full story-mode, her face animated and her voice dropping in pitch to suggest that this particular tale would end in woe. As she spoke, she poured another helping into their glasses.

"I came home one night to find him in flagrante delicto. With my roommate. In my bed. So I'm standing there, my jaw swinging open like I've lost all mental capacity. Then, the dwankie pauses in his tender ministrations to my roommate and says, 'Care to join us, babe?' I tell you, I'd never before felt so bloody murderous in my life. So I drowned him." With a smirk, she took another generous gulp from her glass before continuing in an offhanded manner, "Then I wrote a research paper on somatic narcissism and dedicated it to him."

She glanced at her companion expectantly, wondering what his drowning story might be, and more importantly, if he'd be inclined to share it in kind.

[Michael J. Tritter]

[Location: In a storage area, SB Columbus]

Ryan opened a box and noticed the lights that they were looking for, he than stated the following, one level above his usual talking voice "Over here Honey, I found them" Tritter than walked over to Ryan and gave him a kiss on the cheek, than looked towards the box, he than said "Good job honey" Ryan than proceeded to pull a few of the strings out of the box, he grumbled a bit and said "Damn whoever put them away, they tangled them up" Tritter laughed a bit and says, "Yeah, thats kind of typical sadly"

Ryan proceeded to pull the strings of lights out, he than asked Michael if they were any more. Tritter took a moment to think it over, he replied with "I think theres another box under that box" Ryan nodded a bit and proceeded to set the top box off to the side, he than opened the bottom one, another rats nest. He sighed a bit but left them in the box. Ryan than asked Tritter, "Perhaps you could help me with this?" Tritter looked at the mess his Husband had, he replied with a slightly jovial sounding "I can try, but I'm not very good at stuff like that" Ryan laughed, he focused on Tritter and said "You seem to do just fine with rope" Tritter gave him a look and shook his head slightly. Although they were alone, his Husband was about as corrupt as they get.

Ryan proceeded to untangle the strands of lights, it wasn't an easy task, but once they were untangled, he would give them to Michael to place on the sled that they used from last year. It took them a few hours to untangle the mess, as tangled up strings of lights were the worst and often when you thought you were done, you wouldn't be soo lucky, finding a hidden tangled mess somewhere else in the string. Such is one reason why Ryan was not a fan of Christmas lights. Once Ryan had finished the last one, he than looked over the Sled, he wasn't too sure of the Sleds operation, but he proceeded to plug the lights in to the power source of it and at least turn the power source on so they could test it.

He sighed deeply, thankfully they all turned on, the last thing he wanted to do was play stupid games looking for one burnt out bulb that would take out a string, how they wired these things was soo silly. Despite having been tossed into the bins and left in a rats nest, they were undamaged. Tritter than slid over towards his Husband and wrapped him in a tight hug, he than whispered into their ear "Good job honey, we need to talk" Ryan shifted a bit to look at him curiously, his pulse and heart rate went up slightly when he heard the seriousness in their voice. Tritter than broke the hug and led the other man over to a nearby, well, what looked like a couch anyway, it was fairly dark in there, Tritter had excellent night vision, but black on black is hard to make out even for the most keen of eyes.

He would than indicate for his Husband to take a seat and than Tritter would do the same. He shifted to face the other man and put both of their hands with his, he sighed and than said "Honey, I can't do this long distance thing anymore" He sighed for a moment, he knew Ryan wanted to say something, but he continued, locking his gaze onto the other man's, he than added "You know me, I'm not very emotional, but this is tearing me apart inside and I just, I can't do it, I'm to the point where psychologically, I'm not strong enough"

Ryan's eyes went wide for a moment before stabilizing, he took plenty of time to listen to each word, decipher the meaning and remain focused, as this had caught him out of nowhere. They had a plan, a plan of making it work until he could retire, and now, a big wrench was being thrown into the mix. One of them would have to give up the career they loved, the life they knew and head out into a scary new world, although together, such a change was not by any means a "simple" thing. Ryan than pondered for a moment and than said "Michael, I've never seen you like this, and by how it is affecting you, obviously it can not continue. I know you've put lots of thought into this, what do you have planned?"

It was hard for Ryan to see him this way, but he needed to maintain a degree of composure and try to further along the very serious, potentially life changing conversation that they were having. Tritter closed his eyes for a moment, he needed the mental "distance" to establish what he was going to say next, once his eyes opened, he focused on Ryan and his statements were delivered in a confident fashion, his heavily accented voice had it's traditional strength back, as he needed it to make this statement, he than said, "We need to go back to being one house, not one of us hundreds of thousands of miles away, living on our own, trying to hold it together, thats no way for us or our kids to live."  Ryan knew this day would come and such would be hard for them to exactly figure out the next steps.

Ryan took a moment to let it sink in, he wasn't going to argue against what Michael had said, as he did agree with him, but exactly how such was going to be achieved was going to be a challenge. Tritter took another moment before he said, "I know it's a lot to ask, but I want you to come here and live with me again, permanently, I and our children need that stability" Ryan sighed deeply, it was going to be a major change for him, going from living life at one hundred miles an hour, kicking down doors, chasing bad guys to basically being a house Husband, and he wasn't sure he'd be able to handle it, but giving up was not an option. Ryan took a moment before he said, "I guess I can turn in my badge... But I'm going to need something to do with myself or I will literally loose my mind" Tritter smiled slightly at him and said, "We will figure that out, come here" He than rose to his feet, offering his left hand to his Husband, he proceeded to wrap them in a tight hug once they got up and finally... He wouldn't have to let them go again.

[Kyan Mackenzie]

:: Crew Quarters | Starbase Columbus ::

It had been a crazy week. First the whole thing on Shotaka, which had ended with his being beamed away at the very last second, just as some crazy alien in a track vehicle thing was going to run him over. Then, they'd seen fit to promote him and make him Chief of Station Security. So now, Kyan was Lieutenant "Commander" Mackenzie if you please, and he had his very own office, and his very own access to the armory. And lots and lots of underlings.

Like, LOTS of underlings.

Now though, as he was off shift, Kyan was preparing to go to the party at the Puzzler. Normally the diminutive officer would not attend such a gathering, being as it was simply a gathering of boring drunken grups, but he'd been informed that a certain fat elven grup was in attendence, and holding court. There would no doubt be children there, sitting on the old elf's lap... asking for presents...

Which the old bastard NEVER delivered!... in Kyan's experience anyways.

So that's why he'd torn through his personal effects, looking for his nunchucks, and garrote wire. He had no plans to kill the jolly old elf.... but he also had no limitations either, being in charge of security as he was. No, the plan was to interrogate him. Kyan was more interested in information Specifically why Santa had left all the Onlies without presents for damn near three centuries, and why for several years running now, his requests had gone unfulfilled. It wasn't as though they were that out of the ordinary. All he'd asked for was a Mark IV Klingon Disruptor Pistol with a Lava Stone handle. Preferably from Kor's House. (The old mater was one of Kyan's heroes.)

Kyan pocketed his nunchucks, tucked his throwing knife into his ankle sheath, and made certain that the shoulder holster wasn't bulging under his jacket. Satisfied that all his "toys" were properly concealed, the ancient boy walked out into the corridor and headed for the party....and his meeting with the fat elf!

~ A few minutes later, at Puzzles ~

Kyan walked into the cacophony of merriment and quickly scanned the room for the fat man. Of course he wasn't there. BUT... there was a corner of the club corded off, with a little Snata house, some fake reindeer, and present boxes. Probably Empty... for decoration, he thought. Have to wait till he comes so.

Kyan was definitely disappointed that Santa wasn't there, but his disappointment quickly faded somewhat as he saw some Klingons sitting at the bar, drinking and laughing with some of the station crew. He liked Klingons. They always had good stories, AND they knew how to tell them. AND, they liked to drink, and fight! And they sang good songs, all of which raised their entire race's stock in Kyan's book. He quickly made his way to the bar and hopped up onto a stool alongside them.

"Quch ghom loDnI'oy!" he offered as greeting. Me name's Kyan of the Clan Mackenzie. Good tae see you lot here!" he added. And then to the bartender, "Give me some of the blood wine if ye please."

The bartender blinked incredulously. "Umm.. you're like eight."

Kyan sighed. "Actually ten, if it's appearence yer after, but truly, I'm past me four hundredth by a few decades the now, sure and Oi am.. so it's blood wine."

"Yeah..... umm...."

"Ahroit boyo. ask the computer tae show ye who is the Chief of Security is on this station the now. Oi'll wait. Make sure ye get that tankard on yer way back, an be quick about it if ye would."

The bartender shuffled off with a confused look about him, but a minute later he returned and plunked a tankard of blood wine down on the counter. "Sorry... Commander."

Kyan shrugged. "No harm done, and good on you for doing yer job so."

He picked uop the tankard and downed a big drink. Not the best blood wine ever, but not swill either. "So...what're you lot doing here?" he asked the Klingons. "And have ye any good stories tae tell?"

[T'Prina]

[ The Tea Shoppe - Jenna]

Jenna was finally glad to have some off time to meet T'Prina for tea. Though she had heard of the place before, this was her first time there. "I like this place T'Prina, but I think they went a little overboard with the decorations,"Jenna said. Though she tolerated Christmas, it was always an uneasy time of year for her. She never told anyone why, but she felt is the time was right she would. That time never came up.

[Promenade - The Tea Shoppe]

T'Prina looked over the brim of her delicate teacup and sidelong glanced at the decorations Jenna mentioned. Nearly every available surface had gaudy gold tinsel or bright red and green bunting, hardly complimentary to the small cafe's usual understated decor. She eloquently shrugged a slim shoulder and took another sip of her spiced tea.

"I believe the word most commonly used is, 'festive.' It is to celebrate the human winter holidays, along with the corpulent man in red who monitors the behavior of children, correct?"

The Vulcan had lived among humans for quite some time, but still didn't understand their need for such celebrations. But then, at least her lab had been quiet, with much of the revelers taking their leave. She picked up a crisp biscuit and took a nibble off the end. It was made with a bitter chocolate that she had grown fond of, one of the few treats she indulged in. It was then her commbadge chirped quietly.

Knox to Lt. T'Prina. When you are off duty, may I speak with you?

T'Prina tapped her commbadge, and answered.

"I am currently off duty, Commander, if you would care to join Lt. McKinson and I at The Tea Shoppe on the Upper Promenade. If you would like to speak privately, however, I can meet you somewhere at your convenience."

She belatedly looked up at Jenna, realizing she should have obtained her approval before extending the invitation. The engineer nodded her assent, putting her friend at ease.

"The more the merrier, right?" She added with a smile. The Vulcan just shrugged and sipped at her tea once more.