Penny for your thoughts?

Posted on Tue Mar 2nd, 2021 @ 7:28pm by Sublieutenant Renee Hernandez & Sublieutenant Miles Lynn

1,866 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: Chapter III: The Hunt is On
Location: Mess Hall, Ourainavassa
Timeline: 238702.04

The mess hall had become nearly empty. It had been two hours since Mila and the others had left after their dinner. Once Miles had shared a meal with the Orion engineer - her name, he had learned, was Sari - he had rejoined the group for a couple of drinks. They were a strange group, but it felt like family. Like home. Something Miles had not had in a long time. Ever since they'd left Cera, Mila had been all he'd had. None of his romantic "conquests" had lasted longer than a night, maybe two, and with them travelling from planet to planet, forming lasting friendships had been almost impossible. Now that they were on Ourainavassa, though, that had all changed.

The change in his sister was obvious for everyone. She had finally let herself be herself again, transforming from a reserved, shy girl into a bubbly, cheerful young woman. And even Miles had begun to open up. As annoying as the teasing from his sister was, he knew it was a sign of her happiness. And Sari had even agreed to a real date - they were going to go to the station in the evening to have dinner at that fancy restaurant Xia had taken Mila to, before seeing a film at the station's holocinema. Sari had chosen an early 21st-century Earth comedy film called "Shaun of the Dead", which she had described as a "timeless classic".

But with everything going so well, why was he still feeling so apprehensive, Miles mused, as he was staring into his long-empty glass of port. He had everything he'd ever wished for. They were serving on a top of the line warbird, they had friends, almost family, and he even had a date. Such a turnaround from only a few months ago, when he and his sister had been so fearful for their future.

Renee finished in the kitchen, storing away any leftover food to be made into stew the next day. She never liked to waste anything. As she walked out, she saw Miles Lynn sitting alone.

"Miles?" Renee asked. "Is everything okay? Did your date not go well? Sorry we pushed you into it..."

Miles looked up from his thoughts. "What? Oh, no, it went fine. We're going for dinner and a movie tomorrow night. Some old earth zombie comedy thing. Her choice." He looked back into his empty glass. "No, I've just been thinking. About life and stuff, you know. Things have been going so well lately, I'm almost certain it'll blow up in my face soon. Or I'll wake up from a coma and realise this was all just a dream."

He picked up the glass. "Hey, is the bar still open? I'd have another glass of this stuff. Or just bring the bottle."

Renee raised an eyebrow at Miles, "How old are you again?" She looked around to see if Ash was around, "I won't tell Ash, if you won't... what were you having?"

He shrugged. "I think it was port? But even the house red will do me."

Renee considered the teen in front of her as she got a bottle of red wine and poured him a glass, "Life does have its way of just changing up on you. I thought I had everything going right for me several times... only for things to be yanked out from under me. What's your story? Or do you want to hear mine first?"

Miles sighed. "Oh, where to begin. Mila and I were the result of our parents trying to create 'superior' offspring. I was blessed with superior reflexes, she got the brains. We both got the looks. Of course, they messed up, so my bones break quicker than empty glass vials and she's deaf without her implants. We ran away when we turned 16. Used her brain and my piloting skill to make money. I was flying races, she was betting on me. Of course, it all went wrong and we lost everything when some Ferengi bastard sabotaged my racer. So we got the last cash we had and holed up on Drozana. We were just about to run out of rent money when Ash found us. Saved Mila from some pervert, and got us onto this crew." He shrugged again. "I guess I've been so used to a life on the road that actually settling in feels alien to me. At least Mila seems to be happy."

Renee poured herself a glass after hearing his story, "Parents can really do a number on us, can't they?" She took a sip. "My father was a Section 31 operative. A very good one. Because of that my mother left him... and me when I was a little girl. Because of that I was practically raised in the Section. I didn't really know anything else. I was groomed to take over for my dad, but I'm nothing like him. Nothing like any Section agent, to be honest. I did terrible things trying to be something I wasn't. Things that I still feel so terribly guilty about. Good people died because of me...." she downed her glass and poured herself another. "It took a long time for me to realize that I wasn't my father. Right around the same time I met Ash... now she was someone that was meant to be Section 31," Renee chuckled as she raised her glass to Miles.

"Ash may not have saved me like she did you and your sister... but she definitely changed my life.... both good and bad..." She looked Miles in the eyes, "Life happens. We can have the best intentions in the world. We can do everything right. But some days just aren't our days. But that doesn't mean we don't enjoy the good ones. Having those bad days helps us appreciate the good days more. Makes us stronger. Or so I keep telling myself. I mean look at Ash, she was betrayed by the Section, framed for the destruction of her ship, and spent time as prisoner of war. She never gave up. She remained true to herself and her duties... even the Section abandoned her and let her take the fall for their operation. Ash was stripped of her rank and did time in a Federation prison for them. Yet here she is... off saving people from their own bad days..." she took another sip. She was surprised at herself for using Ash's story to prove a point. Damn hard to hate the former assassin as much as she's tried to. "My point is, take it one day at a time. At some point you'll look back and see how far you've come. And yes, both you and your sister seems happy here."

Miles sipped his wine in silence as he listened to Renée's story, and remained silent for a while after she had finished speaking. It was true, whatever path one's parents had intended for them, everyone was ultimately their own person, and had to find their own way in the galaxy. "I guess you are right," he finally said, breaking his silence. "Strange how we all wound up here, isn't it? The galaxy is a weird place alright." He took another sip. "What's this, a Picard? For all his faults, my dad was a big wine conoisseur, and took great care to pass down his passion to me and Mila. I mean, she hates the stuff, but it definitely worked on me."

"Well done. This is a Picard. You can't teach a good palate. I'd like to think of myself as an amateur wine conoisseur, but really only in the sense of knowing what to pair with my recipes. Maybe you could teach me a few things," Renee said, swirling her glass. "Sometimes I think the universe has a sick sense of humor just about as much as it is a weird place. I never would have thought I'd end up on a mercenary crew with my ex fiance who disappeared on me. Of all of the infinite possibilities of life... this is what I end up with..."

Renee chuckled, "But we all end up where we need to be. If not by chance, then by the choices we make." Seeing the furrowed brow on Miles' face, "Chance puts us into situations. What we choose to do in those situations define us. I could very well have chosen to leave once I found out Ash was on board the Ourainavassa but instead, I chose to stay. And by doing so, I was able to help some people on board and help bring together everyone you met tonight." She refilled both her and Miles' glass, "Ash made a choice that day to help you and your sister. She could have walked away from what was happening, but she chose to do something. And you both chose to trust a stranger... and quite frankly, I've known Ash a long time, she doesn't exactly make great first impressions.... so, it is strange that we all ended up here. But we all chose to do so. We chose to do the right thing, to help others, and to trust... and those kind of choices usually leads to meeting other like minded people... sometimes... eventually... maybe..." Renee continued to sip from her glass. "Even if sometimes things blow up in your face... we dust ourselves off and keep making good choices... like asking out the cute girl and getting a date out of it," she smirked.

Miles smiled at the memory of Sari's excitement when she told him about the movie she wanted to go see with him. "I guess you're right." He took another sip from the wine. "This stuff is exquisite, I have to say. And you are right, I guess. We just have to do the best with the cards we are dealt, ultimately." He took a big swig, and emptied his glass. "So, any plans for the future? Or are you just taking it one day at a time?"

Renee nodded, "Yeah. Quite frankly, I didn't really have a plan for a while. I thought I had a happily ever after laid out in front of me... until I didn't. But I do know I want to do something to help out the chaos in the galaxy. I'm here now and I'm going to make the best of it. See what life brings...' Renee slid him the rest of the bottle, "Keep it. On the house. So what about you? What are your plans? You've got your entire life ahead of you... pretty damn exciting if you ask me."

"Exciting? Terrifying, more like," Miles replied with a hollow chuckle. He noticed the chronometer on the wall behind Renee - it had just gone past 1 am. "Oh dang, is that the time? I should probably try and get some sleep, boss wants me on the bridge at 0700 stat. More attack pattern drills I expect. Thanks for the wine, and the company, though."

Renee smiled at him and nodded, "You're always welcome here to chat. About anything, okay? May not always be free wine though."

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