Scientific Pairings II

Posted on Mon Dec 11th, 2023 @ 7:03am by Ensign Ilan Ocara & Lieutenant JG Orion Wolff

Mission: S1 Episode 6: Joy and Ashes
Location: Chief Science Officer's Quarters
Timeline: Date 2371-09-08 at 2245
5116 words - 10.2 OF Standard Post Measure

"Warships make for poor platforms of scientific inquiry or discovery." He conceded while sipping his drink, considering the change coming for him given his new position as the head of the ship's science department. "Though we were talking about him, specifically, we'd just gotten to his new woman and the fact that there's a betting pool about what she will do to him and the woman he cheats on her with,"

"If something like that were to happen," Orion added as he reached up to open his uniform vest.

"Well, the most money is on when, not if. I suppose the good money is on Andrei managing to shock everyone." Ilan shrugged and nibbled on another piece of the fruit he had laid out for them.

"He's with Lyra Cassiel, the woman we saw in the turbolift."

Orion paused for a moment while just letting that piece of news sink in, though he did quietly have to praise Andrei, he generally did have good tastes in his women. "I'll be curious to see how that all plays out, he's already surprised me, so I think my money would be on surprise...since that is something he's good at doing with people."

"Though for Andrei to be so loyal to her, there has to be something there because the man I knew wouldn't have settled for just something above average," He continued after taking a sip from his drink and watching Ilan. "What can you tell me about her, she's chief of security but that isn't a position you often see filled by a woman."

“Well that in itself is a bit of a wild tale.” Ilan chuckled and thought about the past few months and everything that had played out.

“I’m pretty sure Lyra is the one who has held the post for the longest at this point since we launched.”

"Most certainly sounds like it has the makings of an interesting story," Orion quirked an eyebrow, intrigued to know what had happened. "So she's held the post the longest, who had it before Lyra and what happened to them?"

“Well, first, it was Troy Marshall. He became our XO when our first one died at the Caretaker’s array. After that, he and Andrei split duties for a while - Andrei had been the assistant chief. Andrei was put in charge of the Lovarr, one of the Kazon ships. Finally, the decision came down to two officers: Christoph Ivers and… Madeline Cassiel.” Ilan began the story but paused for effect and the inevitable question.

"Ivers...there didn't seem to be any shortage of noble blood aboard." A frown formed on his handsome features as she mentioned the son of the Lord of Brazil, though it deepened with another woman with the last name Cassiel; he took a moment to consider before speaking up. "So Madeline and Lyra are the same person, at least deducing from what you stated about her being the longest to hold the position...unless she has a sister on the ship in the same department."

“She does not.” Ilan confirmed with an amused smirk as she watched Orion’s mind work with what she was telling him.

“Christoph was picked for the position, but he was only in it for a couple of days when he was injured in what was claimed to be a training accident, but rumor had a much different story to tell.”

"Something tells me the rumors likely have more truth to them than the official story." Orion snorted a little since the Terran Empire existed in a limbo of subtle half-truths and insidiously woven lies that the actual truth was lost along the way. "So what did the rumor mills say about Christoph's training accident? Did he happen to fall down repeatedly onto something solid?"

“Well, considering the same time Andrei was seen sporting a very bruised face and a slight limp, people put the dots together.” Ilan shrugged slightly. “So Cassiel took over for a couple of days… then we got hit with the phage which took Christoph out again… then about two weeks after all that happened, Cassiel offed him.”

"Mmmm, Andrei always did like to play rough." Orion noted, his tone amused while he shifted forward to making another cocktail, pausing to offer to do the same for Ilan. He did make note of the phage and wanted to know more about that, but they were discussing Lyra.

"Any speculation as to why? Did Ivers cross her, or was it merely a mercy kill of sorts?"

Ilan nodded when he offered the second drink, handing over her glass to him and then leaning her head into her hand while her elbow was propped up on the back of the couch. She played with her hair as she sat there and watched him.

"So it took a few days for the reason to trickle down to the crew, but apparently, Madeline Cassiel was the cover identity of Lyra Hale, and the killing was a revenge killing."

This made Orion pause, his head tilting a little, his expression turning pensive as he sat back, their drinks forgotten. "Hale..." He mused as if trying to tickle up an old memory that he only half remembered before snapping his fingers. "Now I remember, the Hales were once the Lords of Brazil, but after a coup the Ivers took their place and every noble house was in shock because the Emperor had allowed his own family to be slaughtered, it quelled many dissenters."

“Yeah, that part is above my pay grade to know or care about. But yeah, it turns out Cassiel is like a cousin of the Emperor or something. Andrei snapped that up real fast.” Ilan shrugged slightly.

Orion did his best to suppress the sigh of exasperation at the statement. Still, he also couldn't blame her for such a view since the world of Imperial politics was nigh impossible to decipher even from the inside. To make a match with Imperial blood was often an unattainable dream, even for the upper echelons of nobility. Though especially for someone like Andrei Petrov, it should have been. Petrov's family were disgraced; the stain was still there even if they had been given an Imperial pardon. Then there was the fact that it was Andrei; the man had a certain charisma and cunning, a low animal sort of cunning. His base and hedonistic nature should have torpedoed any chances. He was unworthy of such a woman as Lyra, especially now that there was someone of proper breeding and standing in society.

He frowned and returned to making their drinks. "Imperial blood is a precious coin, and the families that can claim and prove true lineage are rare, and though she's a cousin, if we were back home, Andrei would be well on his way to working his way into the Imperial Court,"

And trying to claw his way to the throne no doubt, He added silently while handing Ilan her drink, he didn't think the crown would suit Andrei, though he wasn't sure if that was his own bias or if he truly believed that.

“Probably. To be fair they actually do seem like they enjoy each other, so I guess take that as you will.” Ilan shrugged slightly, watching his expression carefully while she took her drink from him. He seemed mildly perturbed by these developments, but she wasn’t exactly sure why.

He sat back and smiled at Ilan, fresh drink in hand as he worked to put this news about Andrei and Lyra out of his mind to focus on his companion and the rest of the conversation. "Then I wish them the best and if Andrei has even a single work brain cell in his head, he won't fuck this up."

“I wouldn’t be as worried about the head brain screwing it up as I would the south brain.” Ilan quipped with a smirk. She was relatively certain Andrei would crumble when put under enough pressure, and she wasn’t really sure why Lyra was wasting her time pretending otherwise.

“What else might you like to know?”

Orion returned her smirk while letting his gaze run over her body once more, meeting her gaze after a moment to give himself time to consider the question. He knew it wasn't a matter of if, but when, Andrei would do something to screw things up which would likely involve him falling dick first into a woman. "Well I am curious about my predecessor, it doesn't seem like these quarters were lived in at all."

He took a sip of his drink and gave the blank room a cursory glance. "Shackled to the lab sort?"

"No, more like a weird ass semi-murderous cyborg who literally did no work and spent her days running experiments on aliens in her secret lab nobody had access to... not that anyone wanted access mind you." Ilan chuckled.

"She died during some sort of computer overload. No great loss, really."

"So no one has been able to breach her lab yet? Or has that been dealt with?" His curiosity peaked a bit but the thought of that information, though it would be his luck that it was either ruined in the computer overload or what so heavily corrupted as to be useless. Though he wouldn't mind taking over the lab space. "What do you think I should know about the Vengeance? What's important."

"Oh we did, torched everything in there not that there was anything worthwhile. Mostly just sick experiments done for pleasure not really in the name of science. The data is all in the computer if you ever want to access it and I had that lab strip cleaned twice." Ilan waved her hand and adjusted a bit on the couch with a sigh.

"Probably the most interesting thing that has happened in a while."

"I'll look it over, sounds like the former chief was a true gem," He replied with a shake of his head before taking a sip of his drink.

"What about you? What does it take to keep a mind like yours engaged?"

"Are you asking personally or professionally?" She returned with a smirk.

"Personally."The Terran noble gave a coy smile in return over the rim of his glass as he crossed his legs.

“I don’t like to be bored or tied down. I love experiencing new things and new people. I don’t limit myself.” Ilan shrugged and took another healthy drink of what she had. “What about you?”

"Currently, living life to the fullest since the past few months have been surviving by the skin of our teeth." He answered while watching Ilan. "Though I do enjoy experiencing new things and new people as well, I just have to get used to interacting with people again since we did live a little less formally on the Gladius."

“I can imagine so with a crew of that size. You must have all been very close in your own ways. Will you miss being there?” She shifted her legs, letting one slide over the front of the couch and dangle there. He was a handsome man and now that he was more comfortable, he was more interesting and certainly forthright with his answers.

"I will, there was a certain camaraderie born from our shared hardship, but I'm keeping myself open to the possibilities of what I might find here." He answered, his tone suggestive as he watched Ilan and legs as she shifted her position. "Though we were more like a family rather than a crew, there was still the chain of command and duties to be carried out but it was more relaxed,"

"Though I will admit that I'm excited to have a full suite of labs to work with, what we had on the Gladius was adequate, but limited."

“I suppose that will probably end up changing which is why we had such a number of personnel shifts. What’s our new chief engineer like?” Ilan decided to ask, it wouldn’t hurt to know more.

"Kit is..." He paused while searching for the right words to describe the woman. "She is blunt and to the point, nor does she suffer bullshit and isn't afraid to call people on it."

“Well surely you can do better than that, Orion.” Ilan teased, her eyelashes fluttering in a flirtatious way, testing in her own ways of course.

Orion's eyes narrowed a bit but shook his head at Ilan's teasing as he finished off what was left of his drink before picking up a slice of fruit. "She's exactly those things and I feel that captures the essence of who she is, Kit is a brilliant engineer, the Gladius and her crew owe her our lives since without her talents we would have died long before our reunion with the Vengeance."

"She is salt of the earth and doesn't mince her words, I respect her talents and her demeanor, after a fashion."

“Not something generally to your taste though?” She asked and quirked a brow, still nursing her drink and doing so slowly. She hadn’t decided if she would stay yet - if he even offered, but the way he had been eyeballing her through their encounter made it seem like he was certainly inclined to.

"Not generally no, but I'm aware that's due to my own upbringing rather than anything to do with her," He admitted honestly to Ilan, watching as she nursed her drink. He waited a beat before speaking again.

"While I know you had other plans for the evening, I was hoping that you might reconsider and accept an offer to spend the evening with me." It was bold and spoke to his attitude regarding Jasper, but he was also Andrei's man so he could wait.

"Hmm.... maybe." Ilan sat forward a bit and flipped her hair behind her shoulder. "People can be very judgmental over underlings who would fuck their boss, you know."

"Yes, the worry of favoritism, manipulation and other unsavory opinions," He replied while watching her shifting and sitting forward. He did seem to be giving the conversation careful consideration. "As I see it we are two consenting adults on our off hours, I wouldn't be expecting anything more from you when we're on duty, but perception can make tongues wag."

"I don't particularly care about tongues wagging, hell, Andrei and Lyra might enjoy not being the only major topic of gossip on the ship." Ilan chuckled and downed her drink, then moved to stand suddenly. "I'm not a one guy kind of girl, just so you are aware. Normally I don't need to say it, but you noble types can feel awfully entitled very quickly from my experience."

"We can be, but that comes from our position within society," Orion answered as he shifted and moved to stand, meeting her gaze. "I'm not expecting you to change, and I'm not looking to impose my Lordly will upon you; I appreciate your candor and respect it,"

He moved around the table to stand near her, looking into the woman's eyes. A smirk formed on his lips as he lightly traced his fingers up her hand and arm. "I'm just offering an evening we can both enjoy."

While he was quite capable of being the entitled nobleman's son when the occasion arose, his father had also seen to it that such an attitude had been tempered since he was heir. Such behavior was unbecoming for a future dominion lord.

"Mmm... well... I guess poor Jasper is just out of luck." Ilan replied, watching his hand move up her bare arm a moment before she looked back up into his eyes. In truth, she just couldn't resist the appeal of a new flavor to try. It was a weakness of hers to be sure, but never to the point of foolishness. Not yet at least and she did her very best to make sure it would never reach that point.

"Oh and I'm using your shower after."

Her last comment made Orion chuckle as his hand moved from her arm to her hip. He drew her into a hungry embrace, making out with her slowly as the hand on her hip began to move over her body, touching and caressing her, working to loosen but not remove her clothes before he pulled back with a purr. He paused in his attentions just long enough to guide her back to the bedroom, as standard as the rest of his quarters. Still, she would be able to see some boxed-up decor in a corner, but the dim lighting prevented her from making it exactly what was there.

His attention returned fully to her as he began to work her clothes off, leaving them in an out of the way pile on the floor, taking a moment to admire her naked form, a smile forming on his lips in approval, guiding her back towards the bed before taking a step back and starting to undress for her.

Ilan had happily followed along with Orion as he pulled and tugged her along like a horny teenager. It amused her, but as she was with most things in her life, she was good natured about it. She appreciated a certain level of enthusiasm after all. Since he seemed quite determined to take on the task himself, she simply moved and shifted when she needed to to assist him in taking off her dress and everything else. Her naked body reacted naturally to the cool air against it, but she didn't care.

When he took a step back and started to work on himself, she sat down and crossed her legs. Ilan was tall and curvaceous, her long legs were toned and her breasts were larger than what some moron had named "ideal" when really... no man liked the ideal - not really at least. It had been that way for hundreds of years though. She placed her wrist on her knee, letting her hand delicately dangle in the air while the other allowed her to lean slightly on the bed.

She simply sat and watched him, enjoying the show.

Orion knew he was being overenthusiastic, perhaps. Still, after the long months on the Gladius and then surviving the battle of the nebula, he needed to be with someone. He needed to feel alive and wanted to be with someone else to experience that. He eventually stood before her without a stitch of clothing; Ilan would find that he was quite fit, his muscles toned and well-defined, his body lacking any hair having developed a preference during his years swimming and he felt it was a more attractive aesthetic. Moving forward, the Terran noble made a soft sound as he looked over his companion's luscious form, to him this was how a woman should look, not the ideal that society pushed as he leaned in to kiss her once more while his began to caress her body, already enjoying himself and glad that he'd sought the woman out.

Ilan returned his embrace, though she was unhurried about it as her hand found the back of his head and neck. She held him there while she returned his kiss and her other hand found his side to pull him closer. Eventually, she pulled back and grinned at him. "Be a sweetheart and make this worth my while."

"Mmm," He purred while leaning in to nibble and kiss at her jaw, working up to her ear as he used his teeth to tug on the lobe gently. "Your wish becomes my desire." A breathy chuckle playing across her skin as the Terran man began to use his hands to explore her body, his lips soon joining them as he trailed kisses down her neck and shoulder, taking his time in reaching her right breast as his hand came up to gently cup and fondle it, while he showered it with more kisses until reaching the dusky peak, teasing it first with his thumb, then his lips before he began to suckle on it gently. It felt good to hold a woman again and one who was obviously quite eager to enjoy the evening as he worked his hand between her legs, fingers moving to start drawing out more pleasure from her as he let himself start sinking into this moment of reality.

A quiet sound passed her lips as he started on his work. She did so enjoy this part of life... possibly to excess, but she didn't care. Besides, to this point in her life it had been an excellent way to get information from people and also earn their trust. On occasion it even granted her favors to be cashed in at another time. Her hands found his sides, but for the moment she made no move to interfere in any way with what he was doing. She liked to see how creative each person was when it came time.

Orion purred with delight as he continued his worshipful attentions to Ilan, suckling first at one nipple then the other as his fingers continued to work between her legs, eventually he shifted his body and used it to part her thighs as he moved her a bit into a position better suited to his attentions. Once he had her settled, the Terran man was between her legs, draping them over his shoulders as his mouth found her apex, turning his attentions to her much more directly, without any hint of teasing.

Ilan was quite happy to let him prove his worthiness of her time and her breathing and voice clearly communicated that fact with quiet moans and other pleasured sounds. She leaned back onto his bed when he lifted her legs over his shoulders and closed her eyes to simply enjoy the moment. He worked her with skill she hadn’t expected really and it didn’t take him long to push her to her peak. Her thighs tensed and her legs closed slightly around his head, but even in the throes she was mindful not to trap him. It continued for a long moment, and then finally he would feel her body relax around him.

“Mm… lovely.”

Orion licked his lips as he took hold of Ilan's legs, drawing them away from his shoulders before moving to stand, letting her legs fall from his grasp, as he looked down at the woman resting on his bed, wondering how much more lovely she might look on proper sheets before he moved over her, leaning in to capture her mouth in a heated kiss, using a hand to caress her body and coaxing her own up to explore his.

Ilan laughed softly against their kiss as he moved over her and grabbed her hands to insist she touch him. When he let them go, she shifted her hands away from his body teasingly, then suddenly grabbed him by the hips and rolled with him until he was underneath her and she straddled him. Looking down, she grinned at him deviously.

“I think you like it this way better.”

"Mmmm," He purred softly as his hands came to rest on her hips as she sat astride him before they slowly started to move over her luscious curves with amorous appreciation, hands cupping and fondling her generous breasts. "It certainly has its appeal and I won't say I'm not enjoying the view."

“I thought as much. You noble boys talk a big game, but in the end you like to be on your backs as much as the next person.” She chuckled, her hand moving between their bodies to find his manhood so she could play with him there.

He made a soft sound of pleasure as he felt her hand grasping his length, enjoying the feeling of her attentions as he grew to his full hardness, while his pride swelled within him at her words, he also tamped down on it as he did love watching a woman move atop him, there was always time later to show her everything that he had about his game. "Mmmm, not allowed to enjoy watching a gorgeous woman ride me just because it's not the proper Terran way?" He teased, licking his lips while holding her gaze.

“That’s right. Never let a woman be on top that’s not manly,” she punctuated the word by squeezing his manhood firmly but not enough to hurt. With a grin, she shifted her hips down and simply slid him up into her sex, not inclined to return the favor he had given to her it seemed.

"Something I'd argue agai-" He was cut off by a moan as she squeezed his manhood before feeling her sinking down atop him, his brain taking a moment to process before looking up at her with a slightly breathless smirk. "Right to it then? No tit-for-tat?"

“Hush.” Ilan demanded of him, placing her hands on his chest and starting to move on top of him. Maybe she was pushing her luck, but she didn’t particularly care if she was being honest.

His surprise was overridden by the pleasure that came with Ilan's motions, enjoying the feeling of her breasts filling his hands as he made a soft moan and let himself get lost in being with her. He began to rock his hips in time with her, not to be so passive; he didn't try to interfere with the pace she had set but could feel that desire growing in the back of his mind. Eventually his hands moved from her breast as she moved atop him, the room having filled with the sounds of their coupling, one going to her hip to stop her moving, the other to move her hands from his chest as he flipped their positions on the bed, placing her underneath him.

Orion took hold of her wrists, pinning them over her head as he started to move, thrusting into her with deep, firm motions, taking her as he moaned and panted with his exertions.

Ilan had been quite enjoying her ride on top of the Terran noble, working herself up and over her peak seemingly without a care for him, but she could tell he was enjoying it. The way he moved and the sounds he was making told her all she needed to know. When he shifted to move her, she thought about resisting but didn’t - she could have rather easily though given her physiology.

When he pinned her wrists, she grinned deviously though didn’t immediately test his grip. She let him settle back into his pace, her own pleasured sounds rising to meet his. Only after a few moments did she really test his grip and when he didn’t relent, she decided she would allow him to have his way.

They continued for several long moments in this way, his movements eventually starting to falter in rhythm until he pressed himself completely into her, heat leaving his body and spreading into her own. With a pleasured purr, Ilan wrapped her arms around him and held him close.

“Mmm… feel better?”

Orion pressed his head against her shoulder, breathing hard as his fingers tightly gripped the sheets beneath them as he let himself continue to come down from his peak, pressing himself against her more firmly. The feeling of a woman pressed close and wrapped around him was invigorating as he lifted his head and gave her a pleased grin, his skin flushed and met her gaze. "Much better, definitely makes up for the months of travel on the Gladius,"

"And you? You seemed to quite enjoy yourself."

"Oh yes, very much." Ilan chuckled and kissed him again. She didn't hurry him to get off of her, but she wouldn't stay long. "Didn't have anyone to lay over there?"

"No one of note really," He answered with a smirk, his thoughts drifting to Annalise as he pondered the path not taken, though his thoughts drifted back to the present and his lover lying beneath him. "A couple of the crew, but I just needed something a little more tonight having survived the chaos and all."

“Well I can certainly understand that.” With one last kiss, she slid her arms from around him and gently coaxed him off and to her side. “It is good to be alive after all.”

Orion shifted and laid on his side beside Ilan, reaching out to caress her naked form, relaxing and just enjoying the sight of her, quiet in his appreciation before meeting her gaze with a smile on his lips. "Quite good indeed, so many things to experience and enjoy, speaking of which."

"Did you want company in the shower or enjoy it all on your own?"

“You can come if you want but I just take a quick sonic shower, nothing special.” Shrugging, Ilan sat up and stretched slowly. “Up to you, handsome.”

"Mmm," Orion made a soft sound of reply, considering but finally shifted to stand, hitting the controls on the nightstand to start the shower before offering her a hand up. "I'll let you enjoy the shower, I'll take advantage of it after."

“Sure, works for me.” She took his hand and stood up, quickly gathering her clothes and then moving into the bathroom without any further conversation or flirtation. She was never one to stick around long unless under certain circumstances.

Orion watched her saunter into the bathroom, stepping out to the living room to fix himself another drink, moving to the window to look out into the abyss of space, considering what Ilan had shared with him about Andrei, about Lyra and her blood tie to the Emperor. His mind started making plans on how he could introduce himself and make his plans accordingly from there to make sure she was with someone who could truly appreciate her. He sipped his drink as his thoughts turned to Ilan. She was fun and certainly had her charms and appeal, perhaps she pressed a little more than she should...though he supposed that was natural so far from home and he did enjoy that trait in a woman.

He heard the doors of his room opening as he turned to look at Ilan, nodding before he spoke, seeing her to the door. "See you in the morning, Ilan."

Once they'd parted, he finished his drink and headed to take advantage of his shower, to luxuriate a little before heading to bed.


END