How to Lose a Man

Posted on Fri Jan 10th, 2020 @ 1:19pm by Lieutenant Aemilia "Millie" Stepanova & Commander Vox Templar & Commander Brielle Jayde

Mission: Side Stories
Location: Deck 5 - Main Lounge

Millie walked into the lounge, smiling at the buzz of conversation and the clink of beverage glasses. She stepped up to the bar, glancing around to see who might also be in the room.

Commander Templar was seated alone at a small table off to one side of the lounge. He took a sip of his drink, savoring the complex aroma on his pallet as he gazed out the transparent aluminum window at the stars. He always felt the need to unwind after the tedious responsibility of going through intelligence reports in which most had the ability of putting him to sleep.

Millie spotted Vox by the window. He'd been dodging her since Moscow (not that it was hard to figure out why when the looks between Brie and Vox on the bridge were overwhelmingly obvious), but she had to admit that she'd missed their conversations. She leaned over the bar, pointing to the refrigeration unit where they kept her stash on ice. With a nod, the bartender passed the bottle of "the good vodka" to her, and at her indication, two glasses.

She crossed the lounge and leaned on the back of the seat adjacent to Vox. "This seat taken?"

He glanced up to see her standing there. He didn't see her coming, which was rare. He let a smile brighten his face slightly and said, "By all means."

"Not expecting anyone?" Millie sat, quickly tucking a leg underneath as she always did. She extended one of the empty glasses to him.

"Just the unexpected," he replied with a faint grin. "How are things in the world of counseling?"

Millie filed her glass, as well as his. Funny you should mention counseling... I haven't seen you for a session since we left Earth."

That old familiar smirk crept back onto Vox's lips as he looked at his glass. He had made it a sport to avoid counseling his whole life except in extreme cases such as dealing with his assimilation. It came in handy for intelligence officers to not only be mentally tough but he had gotten to the point that he actually believed he didn't need to discuss himself very much. He never boasted about himself and figured that attitude worked out for other situations as well.

"Did you wish to discuss the mission situation?"

Millie recognized that smirk and knew that he was going to dodge questions. "I came here to talk about you, друг." She returned the grin before downing her shot of vodka.

He scoffed playfully at her retort. "I'm not the most interesting of subjects. In fact, I could list a few that would be more entertaining."

"Don't sell yourself short, Mr. Templar." Millie set her shot glass down on the table, refilling it with vodka. "You are by far one of the more interesting members of this crew... though it is a close tie between you and Ms. Banks because both of you hold the really juicy stories close to the vest, da?" She picked up her glass, downing it again. "It would be an interesting competition, you and she telling stories to see who had the adventure with the most intrigue."

He leaned back in his chair. "Well, there was the one time I was gathering information about the Orion Syndicate and this giant Orion man tried to explain in no uncertain terms that he was displeased with losing to me in a game of dom'jot. Apparently, he thought that it justified him removing my head from my body." He chuckled softly and sipped his drink.

That warranted a smirk. "You surprise me, Mr. Templar. I would have assumed you were there for the women, not the gambling." Millie winked at him over her drink.

He merely smiled at his drink before bringing it to his lips again. "So tell me how things are with you, Millie."

The counselor smiled. "Aha, so I was right?" She grinned, bringing her own vodka to her lips. "You have a tell, Vox. Every time I get close to the truth, you make a very sly redirect." Millie took a sip. "You were really there for the women, weren't you?"

"That's an absurd line of reasoning, counselor," he said with a loud snort. "You, above all, should know that my professionalism is beyond reproach. I applied the same discipline to my covert dealings as well."

Millie smirked. "So, is that professionalism why you have been avoiding me for the last couple of months?" She downed her glass in one swallow.

"That's a bit of an exaggeration, don't you think, Millie? Its not like I vanished from the ship, after all." He smiled and sipped his drink.

Millie chuckled. "I'm a big girl, Commander. You, of all people, don't have to handle me." She set her glass down on the table, settling back into the chair.

"I'm not avoiding you, Millie. What would you like to talk about?" He grinned widely at her and sipped his drink.

Brielle wandered in, having a babysitter for once, and decided she wanted something to drink. But someone caught her eye, or rather, two someones. Heading in that direction, she eyed them, "Millie, Vox. Fancy meeting you here." She knew there'd been something between the two of them in the past, but had hoped that there was nothing any longer. She wasn't really the jealous type, but she'd fallen for Vox quickly.

"Just catching up." Millie gave her usual pleasant smile. "I have the holodeck reserved in a little bit, so I should probably make my way that direction." She stood, snagging what remained of the bottle of vodka.

Vox arched an eyebrow at both of them and smiled as he offered her the empty chair. "Just having a pleasant conversation about my exceptional skills as an officer."

"Pleasant conversation? Oh now that sounds interesting," Brie stated as she took the sat, giving Vox a smile. "Dare I ask?"

He let out a chuckle and took another swig of his drink. "Just a pleasant conversation about how things change."



Lieutenant Commander Brielle Jayde
Second Officer, USS Mercutio



Commander Vox Templar
Chief Intelligence Officer, USS Mercutio




Lieutenant JG Aemilia "Millie" Stepanova
Chief Counselor, USS Mercutio