Peace Prevails

[Daniel Brooks]

==After mission==

[Beno Velaul]

Upon entering, they stepped onto a marble floor so perfectly polished it seemed liquid, catching light in soft waves as if the stone itself were alive. Despite its glassy sheen, the surface provided flawless traction; the material adjusted instantly to each footstep. At the center of the entry hall towered an ice‑crystal sculpture of the Aquila, refracting light into drifting prismatic colors. A sleek holo‑plaque beneath it shimmered with the words Welcome Crew.
The sculpture stood before a set of oversized smart‑glass doors edged in gold alloy. The trim pulsed gently, outlining each door with a soft glow that responded to motion.

Beyond the doors stretched the sky bar. To the left, the wet bar and dining area were crafted from enhanced English Oak—engineered wood with a mirror‑smooth finish and subtle embedded lighting that responded to touch. To the right, a vast dance floor hovered above the forest thirty stories below, its transparent surface projecting a stabilized image so guests could look down without vertigo. The surrounding mountains cast sweeping shadows across the view, giving the entire floor a sense of floating between earth and sky.

At the far end, two more luminous glass doors opened onto a sprawling balcony. From there, the crew could breathe in cool, filtered air and admire the crystalline lake below, its shoreline curving into a pale ribbon of beach that met the deep green forest line. Overhead, soft atmospheric shields kept the balcony temperate while allowing an unobstructed view of the open sky.

Along the interior walls hung children’s hand‑painted thank‑you pictures, preserved behind protective microglass. Their bright, uneven brushstrokes added a human warmth that quietly softened the bar’s cutting‑edge luxury.
Only one rule applied to all who entered: no uniforms. Civilian attire only—stylish, sharp, and unmistakably off‑duty.

[Samira Khasim]

Samira felt this was worth the time off the Aquila. Too many corridors for her liking. Here, however, this would've fit how she instinctively first thought of the Aquila, or any Ross-class starship on the inside anyway.

She had often envisioned that there would have to be a huge space on the ship like this, with multiple tiers of balconies and whatnot. Sadly, all she found were constant corridors, at least as far as she knew.

So here she was, at the highest view possible, feeling back on Earth, on a mountain, at least the green mountains of California, and not in the the dry, rocky mountains she knew back in Arabia. She wore a shoulder-baring belly shirt, which would've provoked some shock among her tribe but emphasized her culture, while she had robes draped around her arms and shoulders. There can be no doubt she indicated she was off-duty.

==Tag anybody==

[Kalli Thorn]

== Enter...one short girl at the bar... ==

As Kalli arrived to the gathering, she was a little more nervous than usual. Social gatherings were never really her thing, but as she had been gaining rank and responsibility, she understood that her attendance was no longer that of just a simple Engineer. On this last mission, she had officially been operating in the role of Acting Chief Engineer. She had often stepped up as the Assistant Engineering Officer when the mission required, but this time it had been the sort of title that was deliberate in that it tested you for the real position. You typically had to function in the Acting position for long enough and receiving appropriate reviews before you could be considered for the CEO spot in full measure. She had now been working hard in her probationary position and although this was off duty time, she knew there was never really off duty time when you were discussing positions of Department Head or higher on a ship.

This mission had been quite easy in some aspects, but hard in others. There had been no combat with the ship. No lives had been lost and no Damage Control situations where she had to risk life and limb to keep them on mission. Instead, there had been an entire ship of people with every single minor problem you could imagine. She had never really had to deal with the constant need for maintenance on quality of life items for families and civilians that were attached to the crew. The endless list of things people would constantly need someone to hold their hand for made her eyes roll. She had come dangerously close to stuffing a kid down a toilet after what they had pushed down there on one occasion, but she made it through and had a new Ensign deal with the child. Tonight she was away from all of that though. This was the official closure to the entire mission.

In celebration, she had dared to actually wear a dress. It wasn't too fancy, but it was black and came just below the knee. It showed off her shapely calves and had a special element to the fabric that when the light caught it just right, there was a faint gold iridescence that highlighted her curves in very subtle ways. The back was low enough that only about an inch of one of her scars on her back could be seen. Kalli could recall that not so long ago, she insisted on wearing long sleeves and high collars to hide herself. Her friends had managed to help her overcome that over the years.

Strolling up to the bar, she tapped a small design on her bracelet and the display in front of the bartender showed a very specific file for him to run for a replicated form of real alcohol. This was another very rare moment for her, as she was known to almost never drink alcohol in public. This was something special though. It was a distinct scan of a very rare kind of wine she had encountered. A friend had introduced her to it years ago. It was from the hillside of a special river in a Germanic part of Europe and she even knew the name of the hill it grew on in Bernkastel. It was a special kind of sweet wine called a Beerenauslese, made from Riesling grapes that had the good luck of a special kind of fungus develop on them. It took just the right kind of growing conditions for this process to happen correctly and she had even learned that it was known as noble rot. It caused a special kind of sweetness in the growing process that was used to create the unique favor. Kalli had found the story about the forming of the wine almost as good as the wine itself. The idea that something bad had to happen to the grapes to make them all the more perfect for the wine, it was like a secret story to her. The wine was fairly rare and rather expensive, but her friend had gotten her a bottle. It was said to be the sort of growing season that only comes around about once every hundred years and it had then been aging for the perfect 15 years before it came to her. She had to scan it and keep it forever.

The server placed the wine in front of her with an approving smile. The clear glass held a wine that almost looked to have the golden color of honey. Picking it up, she took a sniff and it smelled perfect. She took a tiny sip and let it sit there on her tongue. She loved that the slight warming feeling of the alcohol made it seem like it was soaking right into her body without ever swallowing it. She couldn't really explain it to people, but she loved that drink like no other.

Having now achieved her goal of holding her perfect drink, she turned and slowly took in who else was already there. She spotted a few friends, but knew that she had a way of almost disappearing into a crowd. She was often quiet and enjoyed being underestimated, but she was starting to grow out of that a little more with each mission. Kalli was no longer trying to hide and wondered what tonight might bring.

== Tag to all... ==

[Cologero Coppola]

Walking into the room Cologero was happy to be in civilian clothing, it gave him his own kind of style. When it came to events such as this he would think that Uniforms are tacky, unless it was something to do with diplomats. He didn't notice there were many people he knew yet, seeing how the day was still young they should be around shortly. The best part about the night was Carley in his arm, he was dressed in one of his nicer suits. '

The ice sculpture was a nice touch welcoming the crew, not just the Officers. The marble floor did throw him off about how to walk on it, until he found all the grip he would need. The art work on the walls stood out in a good way, it served as a reminder about what was really important. He did spot one person to talk to, the other should be around eventually. 

"Lieutenant Khasim." He said with a friendly tone. "I am happy to meet you in person, in a setting like this its perfect." The surroundings were different than he was accustom too, however it was a nice change. Looking around to take in the sites, he noticed the dance floor some place he was going to go a lot tonight.

==Tag==

[Carley Young]

This was the first time that Carley came to one of these things without being with Beno, this time the company was better. They took a leisurely pace as they walked in the room, Carley was wearing a formal dress that was low cut with heels. At first the hard souls of the shoes were making a sound when they hit the floor, then the program compensated for it. 

She knew that Beno would be along shortly, there were always some details that still needed sorting out. Some of those plans walked in the room wrapped under linen, she did have an idea about what was going to happen but wouldn't spill the beans.

"Good to see you again." This time Carley was a little reserved, just to try and not to over do things.

==Tag==

[Alexander Talion]

Alex decided to wear a very sharp looking dark blue silk suit, but deliberately didn't wear a tie with it. Along with him was Cindy. She was wearing a dark blue dress that almost matched ALex, but it had the novel aspect that tiny dots of light randomly could be noticed appearing and disappearing slowly, as if staring at a night sky with a few handfuls of twinkling stars. The lights appeared to perhaps be holographic, but it was hard to tell. Her dress was attractively low cut and was almost to the floor, but with a slit up each side enough to draw a few appreciative glances, but nothing too daring.

As they entered Cindy smiled and gave a wave to Carley and Cologero as they joined Samira, hoping Samira was in a better mood today and they might all enjoy the evening. Alex gave a wave to Kalli and they joined her at the bar as they ordered drinks. Alex was looking around for the CO and FO, but had not spotted them yet. He presumed they were attending to last minute details and would make a fitting entrance.

== Tags... ==

[Aanil O'Shea]

Now that the mission was completed Aanil finally took the time to relax and try to focus on all that had occurred and she realized that this was one mission that she was pleased to see come to an end.

Her part in it was small but she was pleased to be able to stay active, even if she had little to do with the success of the mission.

Now that it was completed, she had decided to attend the after mission gathering. The room was filling up and in keeping with her normal habit she proceeded to the bar and climbed up on a stool next to a woman who was facing away as she ordered.

The bartender stepped away giving time to note that the woman sitting next to her was the same height, and she seemed to be focused on the others celebrating throughout the room.
“Yur a darlin, Sláinte” she toasted in her somewhat thick Irish brogue as she raised the glass, and waited to see who approached.

==Open tag==

[Kalli Thorn]

Kalli turned and smiled, raised her glass and repeated the toast back to her with a head nod, "Sláinte!"

She then took a small sip of her wine and savored it once more before adding, "I've not heard that one in a while. I can't always recall what they all mean, but I have managed to collect quite a few toast words over the years. That one is certainly one of my favorites, though I think it requires the appropriate accent to do it justice."

Kalli then turned to properly face her before commenting, "Cindy told me that you all did some rather fine work in Sickbay. It's no small thing bringing a man back from what should have been certain death. I would have loved to have seen the look on the assassin's face when he found out his target lived through being shot through the heart. I've..." She caught herself and adjusted her train of thought, "...I would have thought such a thing nearly impossible, but sometimes doing the impossible is in our job descriptions. Still, I salute you, doctor."

Kalli raised her glass once more as she said the last.

== Tag Aanil ==

[Julia Troy]

Troy had on a beautiful civilian dress the midsection in beautiful gold with silver trim, Surik had a silver suit with gold trim and both animals had on gold and silver coats that match Julia and Surik. When they walk into any room they can get heads to turn.

Julia walked into the room with Surik and both animals by her side. Troy know that she walked a little slower than normal cause of the triplets that she was carrying, and she a few people that she recognized. She noticed that the room looked really beautiful and seen the a few places to sit at, so the duo decided to go towards the dining area for her to sit with Surik standing behind her and both animals sitting on the floor by her feet under the table.

Troy doesn't know who would come up to her to chat for a bit till the event started, and while waiting she was handed a glass of chocolate milk and a few hamburger sliders.

==Open tag to anyone==

[Beno Velaul]

==NPC Raymond Reddington== 

The room felt like he was in the right place, Red had an unusually big smile for such an event. The medical team seemed to be mostly present,  including the person he has been taking more of an interest in. He was more curious that anything, he never really took the time like this before. She had this passion for the emotional support animals, something he was only now starting to understand. 

After getting a single malt scotch Red went to the table where Julia was sitting, as it was there wasn't much traffic in that direction. "Doctor." He said with his glass slightly elevated. "I am looking into getting a cat, it should be a good first pet." They didn't require more attention than they wanted, they really choose to who they would attach themselves too.

"Tonight should be a fun night, I am glad you are here for it." His attention wasn't diverted by anyone else in the room.

==Tag==

[Julia Troy]

Julia sensed someone coming in their direction she grabbed Surik's hand and put it on her shoulder while both animals stayed under the table. Troy turned her head in the direction of the person that was approaching them and waited till they spoke.

"Medic hello. That is a good idea and the breed to get is a British Short hair. I've had that breed of cat when I was younger and now I have a savannah along with a Jack Russell terrier. Yes, tonight should be fun, and anything with alcohol could make me nauseous so me and Surik here came over here away from both of the bars. I am glad to be here also with my guy."

Troy still doesn't know about him unfortunately she can't avoid him while being in sickbay.

"While getting a cat got to set up a spot for the litter box, food and water, along with some cat toys, special cat shampoo, a scratching tree, and some clippers to help with keeping the claws short, plus a collar."

==Tag==

[Aanil O'Shea]

The woman who addressed Aanil was, in height at least of similar size, but the obvious musculature suggested that the Engineer sitting beside was far more formidable than her height would otherwise have suggested.

"Sláinte?, it's an old Irish toast 'To Your Health'; not that you are in need of incentive to maintain yours ." The diminutive redheaded woman smiled, and slid one stool closer. "Since this is a party I suggest we forget rank; Aanil O'Shea at your service; that's quite the impressive physique, but I assume that is more useful for an Engineer than it would be for me in Medical."

There were 2 shot glasses in front of her and she slid one in front of the other woman, raising her glass adding, what was likely a traditional toast "May the best day of your past, be the worst day of your future." And with that the tiny redhead slammed the whiskey back, with a clearly practiced tip of the glass and with no obvious reaction to the strong drink.

Allowing Kalli to follow up, Aanil ordered "A pint, O yur best, bartender" and then turned again to face her fellow officer. "Excellent choice of dress, I too decided not to show much leg, but it is refreshing to get out of those uniforms, don' ya think lassie?"

==Tag Kalli==