RP: Setareh Wing [Aside] One Out of Four

Ki's Cabin

There were a few eccentricities to Ki's cabin. Namely, a small shrine, a poster of a favorite liftcycle rider with his ride, and and an oversized smiling zoloat that sat atop some storage shelves.

"That is a gift from my gram," Ki explained, pointing to the porcelain-like figurine. She rummaged underneath her bed and took out a bottle of mead and said, "This, though, was not." She set it down and adjusted the lighting to be dimmed and the smell to be an mildly spicy, earthy one. She grabbed two cups from the shelves and opened up her sleeping pod to use it as a seat before pouring mead into each cup.

"What is it you want to do, then, if not pilot the ship? Keep taking down orders and giving out bonuses?" To Ki, there was nothing else besides wanting to pilot a ship and nothing else could compare to that one-day dream.

Roza tried to remember what gifts she'd given her own grandchildren. Nothing too thoughtful, it seemed, as she couldn't recall. Maybe some choice salvage? She propped herself up against one wall, and made an effort to look thoughtful, regardless.

"I didn't tell my ship where to go when I had one, either. I was owner and manager, and we had a business to run. It's not that different from what I'm doing now, though here it's demotion I have to worry about, not losing everything I own, and I get steady pay instead of a share of the profits. That's for the best, since we're not fighting the NVR for profit. I have all that I want already, a job where I don't wrack my brain, or risk losing body parts. I've worked at it long enough..."

Ki's Cabin

"Please, imbibe," Ki said as she drank her own mead. "What made you get rid of your ship? It seems to me that you enjoyed having it quite a bit."

Roza took the proffered cup, and drained a mouthful of mead from it. "We went out of business. 'Our assets were liquidated' to cover the company's debts; in regular Saalsari, that means I lost everything but my shirt, and I ended up selling that, too.

"That's what I get for not keeping slush funds, though at least the Vanguard knows that I'm honest. Not all quartermasters are. It helps open up the position, sometimes." Roza smiled briefly, took another drink, and coughed politely afterward, covering her mouth.

Ki's Cabin

Ki fondled the zoloat figurine while Rozalija spoke and said when the mullet-bearing Quartermaster was done, "You without a shirt would be an interesting sight, indeed." Then, getting back to the latter part of Rozalija's statement, said, "Sounds like something worked out well for you. I'm happy you found a job that you like. Even if it is just a job. How many years have you been with the Vanguard?"

"Thirty. Mind you, it's been closer to forty-five since I lost my ship, I'm well past my prime. This is the best job I've ever had. It doesn't have so many perks as running a merchant ship, but neither does it have as many pitfalls." At the rate she was going, Roza would likely be finished her drink before Ki was halfway through hers.

Ki's Cabin

Ki didn't know if Rozalija was an unwise drinker or just a heavyweight and offered her more mead when she had come close to finishing the cup of it. The Iroma were a bunch of lightweights, through and through, and the alcohol absorbs faster into their bodies than one would expect.

Ki herself was already feeling the effects and mildly sloshed her words as she said, "You don't seem past your prime, Rozalija." She tipped her head and her eyebrows shot up as she raised her own cup at the Quartermaster.

"Then I must have really been something half a lifetime ago." Though she was aiming for sarcasm, she couldn't help but smile broadly at the idea. The alcohol may have been involved, as her accent was growing thicker. "It's not as though there were actors butting heads for the chance to pretend to be me."

She waved away the offer for a refill. "I'd better not stumble into the briefing room, that's a good way to earn a demotion or worse."

Ki's Cabin

Rozalija's datarod vibrated in spurts, signaling a text message was being received.

To: Rozalija Añuli Simonis
From: Naak Behea

Please come to the debriefing of Setareh Wing as requested to hand out bonuses.

-Officer Behea, Setareh Wing

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Ki spoke up, "You better get going as if the saints themselves are chasing you. Behea's no joke. It was nice sharing a sip or two with you, though, Rozalija. I'll always be open to enjoying another couple of moments like this with you."

"It could happen." Roza set down the cup and headed out the door, looking at her datarod. "You pick the venue; I'm not sure if we have one with 'no shirts allowed'." She hitched a ride down the hall, and sped away, not thinking much about the encounter, or the task she was heading to. Roza seldom liked to think much, unless she had to.