Breakfast of Champions

Posted on Sat 27th Aug, 2022 @ 9:58am by Sergeant Paul Reilly & Kendra Lincoln

946 words; about a 5 minute read

Mission: The Hunted
Location: Promenade
Timeline: MD 1, 0720

The waitress returned with the drinks promptly. "Here you go, malady. One Classic Coke on the rocks." She placed a tall, red polymer glass on the table in front of Ms. Lincoln with the Coca-Cola logo facing her. "And a straw if you would like to use it," she added as she placed the straw down that was protected by a paper sleeve.

The waitress turned and addressed Paul, "One hot, steaming cup of tea and some sugar cubes, if you want them." She placed the cup down in front of him along with the sugar cube dish and spoon. "Now, what can I get you two to eat?"

Looking up into the waitress's smiling face, Kendra answered, "This order of raspberry cream cheese crepes sounds awesome. Crepes are just really thin pancakes, right?"

Nodding as she tapped her order PADD, the woman agreed. "A little bit more egg, I think, but basically, yes. Would you like a second syrup with that?"

"No, I don't think so, unless you have a raspberry one? I don't like to mix flavors."

"I'll have the chef include a little extra raspberry over the top, then." Turning to the man on the other side of the table, the waitress asked, "And for you, sir?"

"I think I would like to have the Veggie omelette, hash browns and bacon, extra crispy, please." Paul said. He hated having to eat soft, limp bacon. He liked his crisp and crunchy and sometimes in between two slices of bread.

Paul's breakfast sounded delicious, too. "That's why I usually order sausage. It's harder to make it half raw ... or if I ask for crisp, I usually get burned bacon!" Kendra commented, after the waitress left. Changing the subject, she asked, "Anything exciting on your schedule today?"

Paul shook his head, "Nope, we're just going to patrol on foot. Sometimes just our presence is a good deterrent and if it isn't then we will be there to make things right. Crime doesn't pay, it never has and never will." His sentiment was old school, but he believed in it, it was one of his core values.

"I can't argue with you there," Kendra said. "I don't actually understand the criminal mind. I could never be a profiler. Have you ever thought about moving into more investigative work?"

"I had thought about it several times and have even come close to taking the test when there was an opening, but I chickened out at the last moment, made some excuse not to take the test." He looked thoughtful for a moment, "Maybe I just don't like change that much."

Nodding, his breakfast companion said, "I understand that. I've had as many changes as I can handle for a while, and I hope to be here on SB109 for a long time. Have you had a chance to explore anything on the base? I keep hearing about a river somewhere down below. Do you know anything about that? It seems impossible to me."

She sat back as the server set a glasses of orange juice in front of them. "Free with breakfast this morning. Your orders will be up shortly."

Paul looked up at the waitress, "Thank you, ma'am."

As the waitress moved away, Kendra repeated, "So have you heard anything about a river on the base? How would they even do that?"

Paul chuckled, "You should really read up on anyplace you go to. There is so much more here than just a river. It's like a whole world here. Mountains, rivers, hiking, fishing, boats, mountain climbing, horseback riding, you name it, they have it here."

Chewing on her thumbnail, Lincoln thought of that. "Well, I did read some brochures I found on the transport, but it's so different from anything I've seen before on a Starbase, I didn't credit it all. They actually have mountains to climb AND a river? Without a holodeck simulation?"

Paul chuckled knowing that she couldn't get over the thought that the starbase had a river running through several decks that spanned over a mile. Then he added, "It has a waterfall...." Then he thought to himself ~Mind blown~

"No way! I didn't read that! How could they make a waterfall? Unless it's just a couple of feet, like rapids? Do people go kayaking on this river? I'm going to check it out right after work today!" Kendra was half convinced it was some kind of secret joke someone on the base had managed to insert into the base computer. But why would her new friend be in on it? He'd only been here as long as she had, after all. "Is this some kind of newcomers prank being played on me?"

The waitress came back and set their orders before them. "If there's anything else you need, just press the call button." She pointed to a button on the front edge of the table, before walking away again.

Paul chuckled when the waitress was out of earshot, "I think the waterfall drops a deck or two, I'm not sure. I did read that you can do anything on this river that you can do on a river you find on planets. I even saw that it said something about historical steamboat cruises."

"That's amazing! Want to check it out after work tonight?" Kendra asked before digging into her crepes. "Ohhh, these are SO good!"

Paul nodded, "I'm always up for exploring the base. I make it a mission to go somewhere new every evening, time permitting."

"Let's do it! I have to see this river on a starbase!"

"Very well, it's a date. After our shift is over we're going exploring."

 

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