Star Trek: Eventide 777 - ens-carter﹢weber

[D]He entered and went to the room with his bed, he was still under the assumption he was alone in these quarters and no one else had been assigned to them, and quickly returned with a thick, worn book and sat on the couch, where he wrote in it for a bit before setting it on the table in front of the couch and returned to his room, not really thinking ahead that someone could be assigned to there quarters at any time

The doors slid open and Lihne entered the room. She made her way toward her bed, where she had rested her bags and began opening them up. Going through and setting her belongings into ordered piles, she started humming to herself.

He was still in his personal room, the door to it was closed, the journal was sitting on the coffee table still

She glanced toward the common area and noticed the journal on the table. She walked over, sure that it wasn't one of her prized physical books as she picked it up to check whether she was its owner or not. "Did I leave you out here little buddy? I don't remember taking any of you out yet."

The book did not belong to her, but there was no real distinguishing marks, it could have easily been just left there by the rooms previous occupants for the new ones

Curious as to the owner, she began reading through one page.

The page in it was clearly a page from a journal, the date on it read December 21st, 2156, it was the last entry, the next page over there was a piece of paper sticking out

Curious, she marked the page with a finger and removed the paper. Amazed that some paper was still to be found outside of her own collection of books, she looked the paper over for writting.

The piece of paper was a death notice, named for a MACO Master Sergeant named "Oskar Weber" and had a scribble in it from really recent ink reading "2.0 has arrived". The door to Weber's quarters opened and he noticed the orion going through the journal "Hey... that's mine..." He said in a half defensive, half awkward tone

"I'm sorry, I didn't remember if this was one of my books I had left before I went to report in. I'm so sorry." She stuck the paper back where she had found it and sheepily held it out toward Oskar. "I honestly didn't mean to intrude. I....Oh no...I just wrecked first impressions. You're....my roommate, right?"

"I guess so..." He said, taking the journal and self-consciously shoving it under his left arm. He stuck out his right arm for a handshake "Ensign Oskar Weber..." He said, same name that was on the death notice, so far he had only given out his last name, but seeing as this was his roommate for the foreseeable future, he might as well tell her now "And don't worry about it, I only left it out because I didn't know anyone else was assigned here yet."

"Ensign Lihne Carter. Sorry again," She said as she returned the handshake, her voice softened as the disappointment in herself threatened to overtake her mind. "I'd try to say something right now, but I'm afraid I'll just start babbling. I tend to kind of do that in awkward situations."

"I can... see how that'd be a problem." He said, he returned the handshake firmly before dropping his arm "I guess we should probably talk some later when you feel like you won't." He said in a rough and quiet voice

"I thought I was one of the few who still read physical media. Is it any good?" She asked as she nodded toward the book. Having only seen the slip of paper, she hadn't seen any of what was on the actual pages.

"It's... a journal... not an actual book." He said awkwardly "But I do actually read physical books, much more lived in..."

"I brought a few with me...if you want to borrow one."

"I don't think I would... most of mine are war novels." He said with an awkward shrug

"Oh. Well....thought I'd offer. Did you just arrive as well? Still getting the layout of the station memorized before my first shift in the Science section."

"I've only been here for a few days." He said with a nod "A week in a day or two."

"Well, I am excited and a bit impressed at it all. The methods needed to build something in Zero Gravity, let alone something this big....it's got to be a bit mind-boggling for some."

"Yeah... it is..." He said after a second, he had lived when the biggest ship had only three hundred people as its crew "It is... really awe inspiring sometimes..."

"Anywhere or anything that you suggest or recommend during off-hours? I want to be able to experience as much as I can, culture wise and activity wise as I can."

"I wouldn't really know, I go eat, do my job, then come back here..." He admitted with the same rough and quiet tone

"oh," Her face fell slightly. The idea of spending too much time by oneself always began to get to her after a while. Perhaps a slight undiagonsed case of Monophobia but even she had some moments where she had to get out among others.

"Sorry..." He said after a second "I just grew up being alone..." He lied smoothly, that was a common one he used "I may go to a bar one day with Lieutenant Whidbey..." He added on awkwardly. He wasn't sure how to react to how her face fell

"Well....being the product of two races does lead one to moments of self-questioning." She pointed at herself to indicate she was talking about herself. "Do you want something to eat or drink? All I've had since I arrived is some ice cream and I want to try and make up for the journal incident."

"I... guess I will be fine going and getting something to eat. You really don't need to worry about it... just what did you see?" He asked after a second

"Just that little piece of paper, I assumed it was just a bookmark. I made sure to put it back where it was. Is it a memto of a family member?"

"Yeah... you can say that..." He said in an unconvincing tone with a shrug "Where do you want to go to get that drink?" He asked awkwardly in an attempt to change the subject

"Uh...I haven't made it to the bar here yet. If you'd rather stay in, I can get something replicated. My treat, regardless."

"I am fine with either, Rana's is a nice bar..." He said after a second "And you don't need to feel like you owe me something..."

"I know. I just want....you know what they say. Good first impressions and all."

He nodded awkwardly "Alright... yeah, It's up to you if we just stay here or go to Rana's thought." He said after a second. he really didn't want to go anywhere but he sure wasn't going to make that known

She walked over to the replicator, the time she spent walking having worn her down. "Hot Chocolate, Marshmallows and light cream. Oskar, what do you like?"

"Uh... just a soda will be fine..." He said in an awkward tone, he really didn't want to have to do this but he also didn't want to be rude

Lihne put the second replication in and once fully formed, carried the cup over and handed it to Oskar. She took hers and sat down in one of the seats.

He took his and dipped his head in acknowledgment "Thank you." He said politely as he sat opposite her. He took a sip and felt memories rushing back, memories of going out with friends, friends that he never actually knew

"So....uh, I guess maybe we should get to know each other. So, do you have any hobbies?"

'Does not getting shot at count?' He thought to himself but he forced that awkward smile to remain "Uh... reading and... doing some poems on occasion..." He said awkwardly, taking a sip of his soda

"Oh? I know you said you liked reading. I enjoy some good adventures, do you have any you recommend?"

"Books?" He turned in for a second "I'd say that a lot of Tom Clancy and Clive Cussler ones from the early 2000s and late 1900's are good. But they require some knowledge of the time to understand them." He said without that awkwardness

A hand shot out to her PADD and she began typing rapidly into the screen. "I have to look those up. Please tell me you're familiar with Edgar Rice Burroughs, right?"

"I am afraid I am not..."He admitted, the self conscious and awkward tone coming back

"He was an adventure writer in the early half of the 1900's. My dad read me several of his books to me and I started hunting copies of his books I never got to read before down into my collection. Several memorable characters and settings he made that I will be happy to recommend."

"Please do. I'll look into them." He said with a nod "May I ask what division you are in?" He asked casually as he took another sip of his soda

"I'm the new Xenoarcheologist in the Science Division. Stationed in the Geology section."

"I... see..." He said, scientists... again... he seemed to shrink back some when she mentioned that she was a scientist and he partially stammered out as he spoke

"Old civilizations and the mysteries they possible hold always intrigued me. Though if you were to ask me to figure something else, like Astronavigation....not too great at it. No expect, just not my field of study or expertise."

"I can see why it would be difficult to adapt..." He nodded in agreement as he took a sip of his drink

03:59

"What is your favorite part of your work...?"

"Oh its definitely being able to puzzle through undiscovered civilizations, figure out how they worked, what happened through their histories, why they may have fallen."

"That honestly sounds pretty cool..." He said after a second, he seemed to lose some of the sense he had shrunk now. 'At least she's not a geneticist or something...' he thought to himsef

"I can guess by your uniform what branch you are, but I guess are you in a specialized section of your department?"

"I am indeed..." He said with a nod "You want to guess what specialization I am or do you want me to tell you?" He asked with a simple sip of his soda

"Hmmmm," She looked him over, her face in thought. Partly to impose some fun in the act. "Marines, perhaps?"

The was close to what he was in the holodeck, and he swallowed a sudden lump that had formed "Nope... CCTV and security systems operator..." He said awkwardly

"Wow. I'm lucky to know how to load my one holodeck program my dad had made for me when I graduated." She smiled and sipped at her mug. "But especially on a station this big, security is a much bigger job than people give credit for."

If she was paying attention she would see him physically shudder when she mentioned a holodeck "It's not that hard really, I sit at a station all day basically." He said with a shrug, his voice slightly strained as memories came back

"is it too cold in here? I can try and turn up the temperature a little bit." She stood up and turned toward the speakers for the computer.

"No, I'm... fine." He said with a firm tone "Sorry, just a little weird sharing quarters with only two people." He said awkwardly, bringing up a problem that wasn't even related, on the yorktown he had shared quarters with all his fellow MACO members, it was, kind of lonely here

"Oh, well I promise you won't even know I'm here. Even in the Academy, I tended to keep to myself. I'm working myself out of that, but I promise not to be bothersome."

"Ah, thats not what I mean, but I must admit, I am like that too..." He said with a small and awkward chuckle

"Well what ya know, something else we have in common. Toast idea: To Crewmates who are Roommates who have things in common with each other!" She smiled brightly as she reached her mug over to clink with Oskar's cup.

He chuckled, albeit awkwardly, and dutifully clinked his cup to hers "A toast..." He said with an awkward smile

"I hope I haven't keep you or slowed you down with getting introductions made. I have my schedule but I just realized that I have no idea if I had delayed you getting to your shift."

He nodded "Yeah, sorry, I should be going..." He said in an apologetic tone "I need to go get to my post. Have a good day." He said after a second before standing

"You too Oskar. I look forward to working together here. If you need anything, please let me know." She smiled and stood as well.

"Alright, it was nice to meet you." He said with an awkward dip of his head before he left

[PADD] From: CoS Whidbey To: Ensign Weber Hey Mr. Weber. I'd like to request that you go to Ensign McLellan's holodeck program. It should be pretty fun for everyone and it will be a good chance for you to branch out a bit, maybe feel more comfortable.

[PADD] From: Ensign Weber To: CoS Whidbey Understood sir. I will do my best to be there on time.

19:58

He cursed mentally, in his mind he was being ordered to go, ordered to go to the one place on the station he was really and truly afraid of... fuck... he got up and started to get dressed in his uniform

20:02

A few minutes later he was completely dressed, his uniform once more as close to perfect as humanly possible. He left his room and then left the quarters

[D] He appeared in his quarters and went straight to his personal room, he moved to the desk slowly, his eyes still slightly glossed over from talking with Odessa. He sat and avoided looking at one corner of the desk, instead he put all his focus on a patch he had been working on for a few days, it was one of the more detailed ones. Eventually he poked himself with the old fashioned needle he was using and dropped it and rubbed his finger. He looked at that corner and there it was... a picture of Erin. He tried but couldn't take his eyes off that picture. She had a small annoyed smile on her face, her brown hair was pulled back in a pony tail... he let go of the finger and slowly picked up the photograph and rubbed his thumb across is affectionately as a tear dropped off of his face. He was safe here, no need to hide his emotions... he thought as he forced his eye closed

He didn't know how long he had been sitting there studying the picture of Erin but he set the photo down and scooted the work in progress patch to the side and started to scribble something down in German on a piece of paper. "Über Ozeane und Leeren hinweg, Von zu Hause bis in ferne Länder, Auch wenn wir nicht physisch zusammen sein können, bleiben unsere Herzen eins, Meine Liebe geht zu dir, so wie deine Liebe zu mir kommt. Auch wenn wir durch Leben und Tod getrennt sind, unsere Liebe hält uns zusammen." He finished scribbling the poem down on his PADD and closed his eyes again as another tear fell, this time staining the PADD's screen

Finishing her uniform, Lihne moved through the quarters, heading into the hallway as she hurried to her shift.

He entered the quarters and walked to his personal room before changing into some night clothes and getting into bed to try and get some sleep

After laying at attention for several hours trying and failing to get to sleep he got up and left the quarters

[D]He made it back to his quarters with the hypospray and went straight to his bed. He laid down and before he had a chance to sit there and remember he quickly shoved the hypospray to his neck and administered it, quickly falling asleep just like Odessa had said

The door slid open and Lihne walked in. Sighing, she undid her uniform jacket and sat into one of the chairs. "Oooohhh, first shift under my belt. Not too bad, if I say so myself Lihne. Which I do."

He had woken up a few minutes prior and had dressed in a simple pair of grey sweatpants and a sweatshirt and exited his personal room with a minor case of bed head "Morning..." He said in a rough and quiet voice

"Morning Oskar. Sorry, did I wake you? If I did I am so very sorry."

[COMM] "Doctor. Steiger to Ensign Weber."

"No, not your problem... I just woke up a few minutes ago..." He said as he wiped sleep out of his eyes, the hypospray that Odessa gave him did all it promised "I was... Sorry." [COMM] "Ensign Weber here, yes ma'am?"

[COMM] "How did the hypo work? Slept well?"

[COMM] "Yes ma'am, I slept well. Thank you."

[COMM] "Very well, be sure to return the hypo to a biohazard disposal when you have time."

[COMM] "Yes ma'am. I will return it to one next time I see one."

[COMM] "Thank You, Steiger Out."

"Sorry about that Lihne. But you didn't do anything, your fine." He said awkwardly

"Is everything ok? I know we just met and are roommates, but if there's anything I can help with....I hope as crewmates I can be trusted to help if you needed it."

"It was nothing, I just was struggling to get to sleep last night." He said casually. He blinked a few times as he forced away some memories but nodded to her

"Have you tried some background music? Some people benefit with higher Beta Waves and sleep cycles from some low background stimuli." She said, trying to suggest some options in addition to needing to speak to Medicos.

"Yeah, it was just a bad night." He said with a shrug, trying to play it off as such

"Well, I'm not a psychologist but if you ever want to talk to someone....I'll listen." She said as she removed her boots and looked toward the replicators.

"I'll keep that in mind." He said with a nod as he wiped his eyes again, trying to get the sleep out of his eyes

"Pepperoni pizza, extra cheese, four slices. Sparza Water, three cubes of ice." She called to the replicator with a sigh and slightly sleepy smile to her lips.

"You need anything else Lihne?" He asked casually as he started to tame his slight case of bed head

"Well I was going to ask if you wanted anything while I was using the replicator. "

"Ah. I'll take a black Earth coffee if you don't mind." He said, still trying to tame his hair some

"Not at all. Earth Coffee, Black , Hot." She stood up and padded silently across the way and took her food out before putting the other order in. After materializing, she nodded and carried the mug over to Oskar. "Here we go, ask and ye shall recieve."

"Thanks." He said with a nod and a thankful tone. He took a sip of it and gave her a small grin

"Kind of excited and nervous about my first off-duty shift. "

"Yeah. I can understand that. This is my first posting, still very odd..." He agreed as he took another sip of his coffee

"I just have no idea what to do, and I don't want to be out of place or like a tourist too much."

"I feel that to... I was like that during my years at the academy, being one of the only thirty year olds in there."

"Well....with me its kind of been a thing of mine since I was a kid."

"Ah. Yeah. I knew some guys that did the same thing."

"Were they Orion in some degree too?"

"No... all just security guys afraid that they would look like they were useless." He said with a small chuckle

This brought a smile to her lips as she began eating her pizza. "Well, I guess I've been concerned about my pheromones affecting everyone. Even when all the proper steps were taken, still worried about accidentally starting something."

"Ah. Don't need to worry about me." He said with an understanding but slightly hard tone

"Oh? Bad nose?"

"You can say that." He said with a nod

"Well, that makes me feel a little better. Thank you for the smile," She responded with a warm smile. The food on her plate now half gone.

"No need to thank me." He said with a shrug before taking another sip of his coffee

"I know, but I feel like I should. Especially with our differences in skills. I mean if someone decided to try and attack the station, what would I be able to do? I'm just a scientist, most I know is how to aim a phaser and maybe one or two punches. So if I recognize someone with better training than me, Thanking them just seems right to me."

"Hmm... I've got a lot more experience actually 'in the field' than most science officers probably, especially in jungles and the such." Vietnam... the hellhole.... No. He pushed those memories away

"Well, here's to this being a low threat location in Space." She toasted with a now bright and chipper beam to her face.

"Yeah, hopefully..." He said, returning the toast a little hesitantly "Thanks for the coffee, I should go get changed and head out." He added awkwardly

"Anytime. Thanks for the pick me up."

"I didn't really do anything, I just had a conversation." He said in a semi-awkward tone

"Well some times a kind word is enough." She finished her dinner and sighed as she leaned her head back and closed her eyes. A soft hum came from her throat as her meal settled into her stomach and the post meal relaxation cycle began.

"Alright... I should get going. It was... nice to talk to you Lihne." He said with a nod as he finished his drink

"You too as always Oskar. If you dont hear anything when you come back, I may still be out like a light." She smiled as she stood and took her plate to the cleaner

He nodded and stood, recycling his glass and turning towards her "Alright, I'll see you later." He said casually as he turned towards the door

"Stay safe."

"I try to..." He said with a nod before leaving

The door chimed and he looked up, he was wearing a uniform, this one slightly wrinkled since it had been worn for the last few hours. "Enter." He called as he set down his PADD on the coffee table in front of the couch he was sitting on.

The door opened and Mark entered, he looked around the quarters and then at Weber. "Webs!" He said with a large smile and a friendly tone as he walked towards the couch.

He looked at Mark with a dumbfounded look before standing. “Mark! What are you doing here?” He asked with an almost disbelieving tone as he wrapped Mark into an almost brotherly hug.

”Came to check in. The captain said I could so I took the chance.” He said, returning the hug with equal force as he patted Oskar on the back. “So how are you doing?”

He separated from Mark with both hands on his friends shoulders. “I’ve been… alright…” He hesitated as he smiled at his friend. “Doing better now…”

”Spill it Webs, what's wrong?” He asked with a concerned tone, Oskar had come a long way from the defensive and violent one he had first met on the street. He was… kind of proud of how far he had come.

”It's been… rough…” He admitted as he motioned for Mark to sit. “I have had quite a few.. flashbacks I guess.” He continued awkwardly, he felt he hadn't made enough progress in that area, not being able to work had shown him that much…

”Yeah buddy… I get you… what about your social life? I met Odessa, you friends, or* friends?” He asked with a small smirk in a brotherly tone, he always felt he needed to move past Erin, those jabs, while not anything serious, was just his way of reminding Oskar he needed to move on.

”What?” He started at first, not catching on. And then he did. “Odessa!? No! She’s dating another guy.” He said with a disbelieving chuckle at the idea. “But she is a friend.”

”That's good Webs.. you need some friends besides me in my opinion.” He said with a firm but kind tone. “Your journal, you still have it?”

”I… yeah. I still have it. It's in my personal room.” He said with a small nod and a deep breath. “And everything else.”

”Does that include Timmy?” He asked with a raised eyebrow, while to him it was weird Oskar had that thing he could understand. It was basically a security blanket, similar to a teddy bear a child would have, and while Oskar looked like he was thirty five, he was only twenty, he had been fifteen when the program ended, that was a lot of hell for a fifteen year old to have gone through.

2

”I… uh yeah. He’s in there, more of a sit there and stare into a visitor's soul piece than anything now…” He said with an awkward tone and an equally awkward chuckle.

”Sounds good… sounds good…” He muttered with a relieved tone, left to his own devices Oskar probably would have ended up just sitting in his quarters and then only leaving to do his job… he should probably check about that… “And have you made any friends besides Odessa?”

”I mean… not really, I think I am friends with Heinrich… but he's more of an acquaintance if I think about it…” He said awkwardly, he didn't really believe it… he was calling an Augment an acquaintance and not an enemy

”That's good Webs.” He said with a reassuring nod, Oskar was still pretty fragile, especially in that area, which was a really rough area for him.

”What about you? How is Sasha doing?” He asked with his own friendly yet concerned tone.

”She's doing good. She sends her best.” He lied with a smile, Oskar didn't need to worry about him right now, he had his own friends looking out for him, and right bow Oskar needed to look out for himself.

”I am glad to hear it Mark. I really am.” He said with a relieved tone.

”Hey man… listen, I need to go report in to the captain. It was a requirement to check in every twenty four hours and I am getting pretty close to that mark.” He said with a regretful tone as he stood.

”Don't worry about it Mark. It was good to see you.” He said with an understanding tone as he stood.

”I’ll try to fit another visit or two in but I don't really know if I can Webs. It was good to see you too.” He said as he gave Oskar another brief hug.

”Alright, see you later Mark.”

”Got it.” He said with a small nod before separating and leaving.

He smiled as he picked up his PADD and returned to sitting, he hadn't expected to see Mark for a long time… that had been… really nice to see him.

3

He stood a few hours later and left, he needed to check on something.