One Time At A Bar - Part II

Posted on Mon Apr 1st, 2024 @ 11:10pm by Lieutenant Commander Sakaan & Beatrix Zephyrin

1,289 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Season 1, Episode 0: "A Time To Heal"
Location: Moonlight Oasis Bar and Grill

[Previously]

'Logically the next senior officer I'll encounter given her duties,' Sakaan responded after digesting Trixie's reply. She found she had several burning questions for the presumably younger woman, but resisted asking the ones that would be considered rude by emotional races. Sakaan would at least like to be known as a tactful Vulcan. If there is such a thing. She rephrased her question to be more polite, 'If you were such a success as a major performing artist, may I ask why you find this to be as rewarding?' Sakaan arched an eyebrow, 'I'm given to believe that the emotional satisfaction received when performing to large crowds is difficult to recapture in different settings.'

[And now the continuation ...]

"That's true for a lot of people." Beatrix took the continued conversation as an invitations to sit down, which she did in one of the other chairs at the table, "But it really isn't for me. Certainly there's a bigger rush when it comes to a venue of thousands versus a dozen or so, but when you're with that smaller group, it's easier to see the enjoyment on their faces, in their posture. If what I'm singing doesn't resonate with them, I can change it up just that much easier to something that does." She was emphasizing her words with gestures from her hands. "In a massive crowd, with all of the lights on me, a whole band behind me, it's really hard to pick out an individual face in the crowd unless it's in the front row, and the lights rob that from me, too."

Staying silent for a moment, Sakaan absorbed the singer's words before nodding. 'I think I understand. The emotional connection you form in a smaller space is what is valuable to you at this point.' Sakaan finished her drink, and looked to Trixie. 'If you're sat down, would you care to join me in a drink? Drinking alone is generally frowned upon by emotional species.'

"Of which you aren't one." Trixie smiled slightly, but nonetheless turned in the seat towards the bar where the single waiter was performing double duty and signaled him with two fingers to which she got a nod in return, "Big crowd, single person, that emotional connection is really the basis of musical performance. Heck, even when singing by myself with no one around, I want to have that same connection within me." She placed a hand on her chest for emphasis, then dropped it, "I've long since left behind the ego-boost that the large crowds give a lot of singers, although it doesn't take away my enjoyment when I do that. Of course, different costumes for that sort of thing, bigger backup band than I'll have here. I can use recordings, but live is always better."

'It seems like Starfleet is moving back to the future, then. It's been a long time since I've served on vessels that have a complement of live musicians aboard rather than holographic counterparts to save on the resource draw,' Sakaan responded, watching the waiter bus a tray over expertly with their drinks. Eyeing the glass of scotch whisky with a connoisseur's eye, she nodded approvingly at the ratio of ice to liquid. 'Quite competent staff as well, it seems.'

"All personally curated by myself." Beatrix smiled at the waiter as the water, sans ice, was placed in front of her and she took a sip of it, "Victor there is also a drummer who auditioned for me a couple months ago when I obtained this contract, he was in an amateur band back in high school that didn't go anywhere after the rest of them had quit. He started tending bars and waiting tables back in Frankfurt on Earth when he couldn't find anything other than being a backup drummer for local talents. Melanie, who's taking the day off unless I really need her, is a bass player who can also handle an electric guitar along with being a top notch bartender. She actually ran her own place on Starbase 18, a small base where there were maybe oh... Two or three ships a month coming in. Ben is another guitarist who's a rather skilled cook along with one of my pianists Michelle, who doubles as a waitress and cook. I do have a dedicated chef who is on the way, but she's coming specifically for that. Kylie Dorset, who was working at a 2-Michilen-Star restaurant, 'The Vine' in New York City. I've given her full run of the daily menu, so long as she also keeps a few bits of standard fare of various cultures on it as well."

Placing her chin in her hand, Sakaan arched an eyebrow, 'impressive.' She took an appreciative sip of the sixteen-year-old Lagavulin single malt. Deliciously smoky and peaty, she allowed the taste to linger on her tongue before swallowing. 'It must have been quite the challenge to collect such a distinctive collection of individuals. I know the Yorktown is a new ship, but she's not the Enterprise. Was there a particular attraction for them to decide on serving aboard?’

“Yorktown has a famous history across the ages, despite not being a fleet flagship in a long time.” Beatrix remarked, “I’ll admit I did play to the historian that’s in every musician’s heart a fair bit, but I’ve got a bit of a reputation myself. I typically interview everyone that expressed a desire multiple times, to get a feel for what is going on inside them, their drive, their desire for growth. Then I tell them all about myself and my own history. There’s a fair bit of wanderlust in everyone so far, which is good since we don’t know where we’re going, but that isn’t enough for me. I tried to let them understand my love of music, of hope and distress and the emotions behind every piece. Also, musical genre does matter, because not everyone likes the same stuff. I myself am more into older style rock and roll, though I’ll dabble across everything. But I think it was my outreach programs that really drew people in.”

'Fascinating. It almost sounds as much work as recruiting for Starfleet Intelligence,' Sakaan replied with interest. 'I'm sure it was quite the task to weigh each persons pros and cons, and how they would function together as a team or musical ensemble.'

"With no guarantee that it'll actually work out, just the same as Intelligence, I presume." Beatrix agreed, "Back when I was a kid, my sisters and I formed our own little group. I was on the guitar and main singer, Octavia was the drummer, didn't do much of the backups, but Minerva was good on the piano and was my backup singer, handling most of the harmonies. We only played around, even though we won the talent show in our first year in high school. Then Minerva started her calling with her medical training and Octavia stated her intent to join the Army and began her training after school and on weekends, so I started to find others. I suppose I was a disappointment to the family, because I didn't go into public service like all of them."

'Even with extensive testing of intellect and personality, it is difficult to synthesise an appropriate team with which to conduct Intelligence work,' Sakaan conceded. 'I have been fortunate not to have experienced too much of that in my Starfleet career. Your sister is our Chief Medical Officer? Was there a particular waiver required to have siblings serving aboard the same ship?'

[To Be Continued ... ]

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