The Path Restored

Posted on Wed May 7th, 2025 @ 7:41am by Master Warrant Officer Yerin Di'Ara & Lieutenant Gabrielle Mailliard
Edited on on Wed May 7th, 2025 @ 7:42am

1,332 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: Mission 9: When the Stars Went Silent
Location: Mess Hall
Timeline: Two Days After the Battle of Vulcan

The ship had been running on auxiliary power for a while now but such a thing was actually relative. For a ship like a Defiant, it would mean a lot more austere conditions. But for a ship as massive like the Denver, it pretty much meant slightly better conditions than absolute crap.

Compared to sickbay which was receiving priority power allocation from Operations, the rest of the ship seemed ominous and foreboding. At least the red battle lanterns weren’t going off anymore making things even more intense, but the dim light was just enough to allow people to get to where they were going without tripping on each other. The engineering crews were everywhere, clearing debris, repairing damage and gradually restoring power to affected areas but she knew from experience that wasn’t going to be resolved instantly.

The mess hall wasn’t that much different. And while she expected it to be devoid of people, there were quite a few there who were busy eating and talking with friends and comrades. Everyone coped in different ways, Yerin knew that well, and trying to remain positive and relying on humor was pretty much all most people could do just to avoid getting consumed by despair.

She was used to stares, she wasn’t ignorant of the way she looked, and with the cheerful counselor joining her, they certainly would be attracting some attention whenever they went. But she knew that the eyes that kept wandering over to them as they took up a quiet corner of the mess hall and began to eat wasn’t because of the usual reasons.

She had no trouble hauling her tray of food to their table. The replicators were working on limited functionality so all they could really get were simpler high calorie meals. She didn’t mind that at all. The Bellerophon was a smaller ship that didn’t absorb damage as well as larger ships so she was used to not having as many options in her meals as she normally did.

But what she lacked in options she made up for in volume, which is what she needed the most right now. Protein bars, meat patties pretending to be salisbury steak, and a goopy paste that tasted like underseasoned mashed potatoes, and a lot of it, were piled onto her tray, which she slowly demolished as the counselor sat across from her with her own plate of food.

Gabrielle had been chatting up a storm as the two women made their way through the corridors toward the lounge.

“I know what you’re thinking,” she had said to Yerin, as if it were some sort of personal secret, “...this Gabrielle, she is French as a Motherfucker! She will be dreaming of Coq au Vin, Boeuf Bourguignon, Cassoulet, Nicoise, Escargot, or something French and predictable! But I want you to know that you are completely one hundred percent correct!” Her hands animated the air in front of them as they walked, creating gloriously foodly shapes out of nothing. “I want a Baguette, Rillettes de Porc, a big chunk of Brie and a salade. Mm!”

Sadly, given the ship’s battered state this selection was out of reach for now. She had the same rations as everyone else, accompanied by a glass of water which was already half empty, almost as soon as they had sat down. Gabrielle seemed in her element and not at all surprised by the sheer quantity of food that Yerin had brought.

“Which you ‘ave first?” She asked, “The salade? The Bouillabaisse? An amuse bouche per’aps for the Duchess at her grand dinner hm?” Gabrielle winked before popping a piece of… something… in her mouth. It tasted alright, but Cordon bleu it was not.

“Caesar salad and the clam chowder first,” Yerin said with a chuckle. “I like my greens to be as crisp as possible at the start of the meal and I prefer my thick soups warm.” As they dug in, she looked over at her companion’s meal then hers and sighed, wishing they actually were eating what they were dreaming about. Still she was grateful they had something reasonably palatable. She’d once been on a ground campaign eating mostly emergency rations. That was pure hell.

“I really need to brush up on my French cuisine. The last time I made anything like that was when I took that culinary course years ago. I have to admit, Italian and Japanese food sidetracked me far too much. And then there was that whole phase when I made nothing but Cantonese and Sichuan stuff.”

Unlike some people who knew how to cook, and gourmets like herself, Yerin didn’t view replicator food in the same way they did. It tasted good, held all the same nutrients as the authentic stuff, and at times it was actually better than what most chefs could make. But it was undeniable that the real thing was still considerably better. Still, she always appreciated happiness where one could find it, and right now she was very much happy with what she was eating.

On the other side of the groaning table, somehow Gabrielle’s glass of water was empty without her perceptibly having drank any of it. She cut off a chunk of stuff from the pattie and knifed it directly into her mouth.

“You spend a lot of time on Earth before, hm?” She asked, covering her mouth with a well manicured hand.

In between bites, making sure she wasn’t being rude, despite the sheer amount of food that was steadily disappearing from her tray, Yerin related to her how she ended up discovering the Federation for the first time, how she was one of the first that ended up going to Earth as one of the first Orlanians, and received permission to study at the academy and eventually join Starfleet.

“Between nursing school and cultural exchanges, everything was so new to me and exciting,” she related with a grin. “I was always big on experiencing food so I went to culinary school. I would have become a chef if I didn’t like being a healer more. Unfortunately, Starfleet Medical wasn’t so keen on me using the healing methods of my people as part of standard practice, So I had to learn how the Federation cured people of illnesses their way.”

The ‘meat’ and starches were gone, and she was down the protein bars she saved for last which at least tasted like dessert. “You know, many people like to complain when they get food like this, until they have to suffer worse and then suddenly they’re dreaming of having just a taste of something that isn’t rotten. It’s not so bad, fruit and nut with caramel. I mean I would love a teriyaki beef bowl and a big plate of southern fried chicken but considering what we’re going through, this is pretty good.”

She lifted the bowl containing the individually wrapped bars and offered it to her companion. “Want one?”

“Mmm!” Curious, Gabrielle reached over and took a piece.

“Well, as you ‘ave this many plates I think per’aps you can spare a little, no? Very kind…” she said with animation and taking Yerin’s example used her fingers to pop some into her mouth once the wrapping was removed. Her expression changed from jovial curiosity. As her eyes rolled back in her head she made a face that one could have supposed was often seen at a more intimate time.

“Mmmm… mon dieu, this is… mmm! So so good. Maman, pardonne-moi si c'est meilleur que la cuisine française! She added quietly before upping the volume again. “You mustt give me the replicator code for eet.”

Yerin laughed. “That good, huh? And sure thing! Always happy to share with a friend.”

 

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