Time: 0500 hours, ship-board time
The Intrepid-class starship had been en route to the Aeran System for several days now, where it had been scheduled to deliver standard operating supplies to Starbase 234; however, those supplies were not the only thing the starship was ferrying during this trip to the station.
Second Lieutenant Richard Winters stood in the head attached to his guest quarters, leaning over the sink with a razor in his hand. Shaving had been the first thing done every morning for the last four years, as any self-respecting Marine always looked his best. And while there were newer, more modern methods of removing the ever-growing follicles from his chin and neck, the young man had always preferred the efficiency of a classic sharpened razor blade. Nothing else seemed to get as close.
After shaving came his shower, with which he admittedly allowed himself to take his time. During his four years of OCS he had not once been allowed to linger in a shower. It had always been get in, get clean, and get the hell out. So prolonged showers were a luxury he allowed himself.
By the time he had finished his shower and pulled on his clean, green-collard duty uniform, the chronometer read 0600; time to head to chow. Eating was another luxury Winters had learned to cherish during Officer Candidacy School. Meal times were a privilege during training, just something else that used up valuable time that could be spent running the Currahee Trail or learning about yet another miniscule, unimportant Starfleet policy regarding the folding of skivvies.
So food and drink had become something of a treasure to the Lieutenant since leaving Quantico four weeks ago. He had started sampling foods from across two galactic quadrants, and had no intention of letting up soon.
Winters offered a nod to the host who stood at the entrance to the galley as he entered the mess hall. He found a seat off to the side near the floor-to-ceiling transparent aluminum viewports that lined the frontend of the chamber, and waited for a server to visit.
"Two Denebian eggs, over easy, with Zabo sausage, two pieces of toast, and half a Kava fruit, please," the man requested. "Oh, and a glass of grape juice."
"Coming right up, Lieutenant," said the server as he took the order back to the host. Most of his order would be replicated, he knew, but the toast and (possibly) the fruit would be fresh.
"Mornin, Dick," said a voice approaching from behind him. Given the use of Winters' nickname, there were only a few options on who it could be. "Sorry I'm late."
A moment later a man sat down across from Winters. He was Andorian, with short-cut white hair and two jointed antennae sprouting from his head; and he too wore the green-collared uniform of a Starfleet Marine Corps officer, supported by the gold bar fastened to it. Second Lieutenant Larvinix "Nix" th'Laxonth had been a member of Winters' graduating class at Quantico.
"Hey, Nix," replied the human, looking up as his food was placed on the table before him. There was friendly sarcasm in his voice as he added, "Nice of you to join me."
"I'll have what he's having, and a black coffee, please," the Andorian said to the host as Winters began eating. "And you're up kinda early aren't ya? I mean, we just graduated, Dick. Relax a little, will ya?"
Chewing a forkful of egg, Winters raised an eyebrow at his friend.
Th'Lanxonth sighed as he protested, "What? We earned it. Four years of hard work. I'm gonna relax now."
A moment later the server returned with Nix's order and placed it in front of him. As soon as the server stepped away the Andorian reached down below the table and returned with a small flask. The container was just small enough to fit, say, in the top of his uniform boots. With a quick motion he uncapped it, poured a small amount of its contents into his black coffee, and returned the flask to his secret hiding space.
"New sweetener, Nix?" asked Winters before eating on a piece of his toast.
The Andorian leaned over the table and, with a mischievous grin on his face, replied, "You know, Dick, you humans have a lot to be proud of. This stuff is called 'V-A-T 69.' It's a blended malt whiskey. Wonderful stuff."
"Vat," said Richard after swallowing his toast. "It's pronounced VAT 69." The Lieutenant had never been one to drink much, except the occasional synthehol on special occasions, he had made a point long ago to read up on such beverages; they had been a long-standing tradition of serving in the military.
"Oh," said Nix, looking down at his coffee. "Thanks."
"And you shouldn't be drinking that on duty, Nix. Not exactly sure how our Company commander's gonna feel about that."
With a smirk the Andorian quipped, "Then is now a bad time to tell you that I've got six bottles of this stuff stashed in your billet?"
Winters sighed and shook his head, not being able to help but grin. Th'Laxonth had been his bunkmate in the academy, and the two had instantly hit if off despite their obvious differences. Nix came from a family of wealth and power on Andoria, which greatly differed from Dick's own childhood of mediocrity.
"Should've known you'd do something like that," he chuckled, finishing his eggs and pulling the kava in front of him. Its sweet tartness was welcome after the saltiness of the sausage. "We'll be there tomorrow morning, by the way. Got the news from the duty officer this morning."
Still grinning the Andorian replied, "Sounds good. Can't wait to meet the hard ass over our company. Until then, how about a trip to the Holodeck? I hear that the Romulans may make another pass and Starbase 12 this afternoon. "
It had been a tradition for the last six months, when they had first begun receiving Holodeck privileges at Quantico; they were playing out roles as fighter pilots in the Romulan Wars of the Twenty-Second Century.
"Count me out, Nix," replied Winters, finishing his fruit and standing up. "I've got a lot to do before we reach Unity, and I want to be prepared when we arrive…"
=/-\= End Log =/-\=
Second Lieutenant Richard "Dick" Winters
Platoon Commander, First Platoon, Easy Company
2nd Battalion, 1st Regiment, 1st MEF
Second Lieutenant Larvinix "Nix" th'Laxonth (NPC apb DK)
Intelligence Officer
2nd Battalion, 1st Regiment, 1st MEF