Doth Milady Care For Chat?

Posted on Fri Oct 6th, 2017 @ 10:56pm by Staff Sergeant Nyx'e'Trixe Valentine & Lieutenant Valeria Mordin

Mission: https://wellington.pegasusfleet.site/index.php/sim/missions/id/3
Location: Lounge
Timeline: Prior to "An Unexpected End"

=/\=

It was with murmurs that Nyx ordered something to eat from the replicators before taking her tray and finding a corner to sit in, looking outwards with no need to watch her back. It was a habit that she had from since she was young, not something she could lose easily. In front of her was something she'd gotten to enjoy when she'd been at the Academy on Earth. Pizza. Could put anything on it and didn't even need to drop her eyes too much to eat it, which made it almost perfect for someone whose paranoia made her want to keep an eye out everywhere. She took a surprisingly delicate bite off the tip of the slice, aware of every piece of hardware she carried even here.

Someone else was also very aware of every piece of hardware she carried, except it wasn't on a pizza.

Long ears, long legs, curves where it counted, and a ghost of a smile that promised a story but said nothing. Soft eyes that hid their reflection, drawing light in but giving back nothing... but there was more. Beneath the soft exterior presented to the world, there was the march of someone who actually had some degree of... dare it be said... proper training. She carried herself with a confidence, even the way she walked was looking two or three steps ahead. The contents of her tray hardly even shifted as she took each step, it was like watching sand move out of the way of a storm.

It was that stride that brought the rabbitess over towards Nyx's table. "Would you mind if I joined you, or do you prefer to be alone?" she asked before even five feet from the table. Before that awkward 'well you're already here' distance that humans seemed to approach to before asking.

'Nothing visible, but hidden weapons possible.' Nyx's eyes had scanned the Tsu'sugi as soon as she'd walked in the room, but the way she carried herself told of someone dangerous in her own right. "By all means," she said, a small smile on her face, gesturing vaguely to the table, "Lieutenant Nyx Valentine, Marines." She reached out her hand in the human gesture, but inclined her head in a properly Tialan gesture of greeting an unfamiliar person.

Valeria closed the distance with a few final steps, then set her tray down before taking Nyx's offered hand, giving a slight nod of her own head in return, "Lieutenant Junior Valeria Mordin, Sciences." and she slid into the offered chair. Nyx's tray had pizza, while Valeria's had a few pieces of chicken and a few slices of tomato accompanying.

"I usually sit near the view ports to watch the stars go by at warp. It's a fascinating display of colors and light, even if it can be a bit bright at times."

Translating the rank was equal to her own, "It is a view I still have to get used to, Milady." Nyx admitted, "I have not seen it more than a handful of times. My first was about... six and a half years ago? When I went from my home planet to Earth."

Valeria gave a nod, "I didn't see the stars streak by until I enrolled in the Academy. My people are a bit superstitious about the view and close the viewports when they jump to warp. Public shuttles don't go fast enough though and the trip is over in a blink. So, my first view was aboard a ship like this." she turned to look directly out the viewport. "It's a breathtaking sight, not just the view, but the idea behind how it came to be."

"I've seen Earth in pictures. It looks peaceful, but a bit cluttered."

"And very high tech." Nyx added, "Tial is considered rather low tech world in comparison and outside of our space facilities..."

"Sometimes the shine can hide the smear." she pointed out after she took a nibble off her plate. "How are you adjusting to the prospect of serving aboard a starship with Starfleet personnel? I've heard that there can be something of a rivalry between our departments."

"Between Sciences and Marines, Milady? I don't recall hostilities between them, but Security? I have heard of that one. Still, it feels odd to be in space all the time to me and I haven't really spent much time outside the barracks and training areas for the Marines, thus it's been quiet, Milady."

"More in a general Federation and Marine compliment rivalry, actually. No one has quarrel with Sciences." she said with a smirk, "It's like having a quarrel with Medical."

"And please, Valeria will suffice."

"Milady?" Nyx asked uncomfortably, "The proper address for a similar rank on Tial... I can't just..." She blushed in embarrassment, "I.. I can try, Mi- Valeria." She closed her eyes for a moment to gather herself to try to not stutter, "It might be hard for me, but please call me Nyx, if you would like."

Valeria gave a nod, and held up a hand, "I was unaware of it being more than a personal choice." she said, in an apologetic tone, "If one is more comfortable than the other, then please, use whichever you find less discomforting." she said, with the unspoken promise that being called Milady wouldn't go to her head.

"Nyx. It's a lovely name." she complimented, perhaps the proper course after causing a little discomfort.

Nyx smiled gratefully, "I can at least try to call you Valeris in private, only ever off duty. On Tial, everything and everyone is 'ranked', all the time." She brushed the triple-chevroned tattoos on the rear edges of her cheeks, "These show everyone that I am a priestess of the third rank of our goddess of war at a glance, much like the rank insignia we wear."

She paused for a moment, almost unsure of whether Valeris would want to hear, then continued, deciding the rabbitess would stop her otherwise. "Priestesses of our other gods wear similar markings, each distinguishable to their 'chosen' line. So if I were to meet any of rhe third rank, I would be immediately able to know to refer to them as Milady or Milord, while fourth or higher would be My Lady or Lord. First or second rank , the formality can be reduced on my end, but not theirs. And, of course, that is only among the Korashe, any Sentar can be called or treated however." That last came with an air of discomfort.

Valeria's ears were perked as she listened. New knowledge about a new culture was always fascinating. "I figured the markings were either of a religious significance or a military one. Very interesting." she cited, before taking another nibble off her plate. "Our fur prevents most permanent markings, so we dye our fur when such are needed. Though for indications of rank, we either use a torc or a bracer to show rank. That's when we're not in an official uniform, mind you. While so attired, rank is easy to spot." a pause, "If one knows what to look for."

"That is the nature of uniforms, of course." Nyx agreed, "And when going into true combat, of course we wear insignia as well. Scrutiny in the midst of fighting does tend to take second place to the combat itself and orders can get jumbled when determining whose orders to follow. Here, in Starfleet, it is definitely easy to determine. And the color of the uniforms also generally sort people out as well, except for engineering and security... I sometimes can't tell whether someone is going to fix a problem or shoot a problem unless they have a phaser on."

That made the rabbitess giggle. "There's a joke in there somewhere about 'troubleshooting' that almost makes itself." She then motioned to her own blue uniform, "Sciences and Medical also get confused often, though the two departments can easily be found working together often." she then started thinking. "Blue, Yellow, Red, Green... I've seen Grey once or twice, and I think I saw Violet back at Academy, but aside from that no real variance. Though they did hit the major spectrum points at least. Aesthetically pleasing if nothing else."

"And something absolutely unknown to me until six years ago!" Nyx chuckled, "It"s almost like they want to say, 'Hey, let's confuse the ever living dizit out of foreigners.'"

That got a giggle from the rabbitess. "Perhaps it's to throw off enemies. You never know which uniforms are high-value targets?" she guessed, "Or, perhaps the truth of it is that it's all about visibility. Yellow and blue for areas where you need to see if there's something like blood on your uniform, and then command gets red so that no one knows how bad your injuries are."

"There was this one joke I heard at the Academy." Nyx smiled at her, "A pirate captain was at large and had a reputation. He saw a ship on the horizon and said 'First Mate! Bring me my red shirt!' The first mate looked at him and asked, 'Why the red shirt?' He responded 'So that if I get wounded in the fight, no one will see that I'm bleeding and won't lose heart.' So the first mate went and got him his red shirt, they fought the other ship and won easily. A few days later, the first mate goes to the Captain and says, 'Captain, there are three ships on the horizon, what do we do?' 'Bring me my red shirt!' he responded, the first mate did, and against all odds, the crew won with seemingly ease. A week later, the first mate came to the Captain, nervous, but confident, 'Captain, there are ten ship on the horizon!' He waited there, waiting for the usual command. The Captain went and looked himself, then turned to the first mate, 'First Mate, bring me my brown pants!'"

It was a joke she hadn't heard before, so she gave a giggle at the thought. It turned quickly into a full blown laugh, which Valeria tried to restrain, but instead just let ring for a few moments. "Oh, that's good."

"We don't have many jokes that subtly vulgar on Ts'usu. Most of what we have are hidden lessons or methods of being clever. The student who ate his dinner when the shop beneath him was serving food to enhance the flavor of his bland food, or the statue that was called as a witness to a crime." she explained.

"But nothing about pants." at the thought, she started to giggle again.

"It's definitely better than what I was used to." Nyx agreed, "Humour on Tial was very one sided." She glanced down at her now empty plate, "I must beg your forgiveness, Milady Valeria," she compromised both forms of address, "I must return to my duties... Perhaps some other time, we could do this again?"

The rabbitess gave a nod, "It was very interesting to meet you, and you're an exceptional conversationalist. I look forward to our next meeting." she gave a slightly deeper nod, "I do not wish to keep you from your duties. Until next time."

"Indeed, Milady Valeria, and there will most assuredly BE a next time." Nyx stood and left.

OFF:

First Lieutenant Nyx'e'Trixe Valentine
Acting Marine Executive Officer

Lieutenant Junior Grade Valeria Mordin
Science Officer