***Ok, I'm sorry I haven't posted in a very long time --about 5 months
actualy. So, I want to give thanks to everyone who's read this story and
is still clinging to the vesper of hope that it will be completed someday
.....because you're not alone. Things are going to start a little slow in
the postings, but I thank you from the bottom of my heart for sticking with
this.
And now, chapter 8.****
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~The next morning...~
Lucas got up before the captain had awoken and glanced to the small digital clock set on the end table. 6am. Way too early for someone who's average wake-up time was 10 am. He stretched stiff muscles and yawned, reaching for the ceiling and squinted in the early morning light the curtains allowed to spill across the carpet. ~Why does this room have to face east?~ he thought. His head felt light, his feet tingled from sudden pressure, and his stomach told him clearly breakfast needed to come soon.
He grumbled. The couch was comfortable, but it had left a bad crimp in his neck. Slipping on his shoes, he eased out of room 301 and made his way down the hall to the stairs at the end. Since last night's incident, his want to take the elevator had decreased a conciderable amount. Besides, it was a good excuse to excersise.
The hotel restaurant was decorated in bright colors with a simple carpet pattern. The colonial dark wood chairs were neatly aranged around each identicle table, a breakfast bar ran through the center of the room flanked heavily by ferns, and the clattering of dishes in the back refreshed his sense of morning. He waved to a group of familiar people taking up a table near one of the sheer covered windows.
"Good morning, Lucas," Katie sipped her coffee with a general greeting to him.
Miguel had his mouth full of biscuts and gravy, but managed a friendly wave. Ben sat on the other side of the table reading a copy of the Alexandria Times. He glanced up with raised brows. "Morning, Luke. What are you doing here?"
Lucas thought that looked too comfortable for the way Ben and Katie always approached mornings on the ship. "Change of plans," he yawned. It was a good explanation: short, simple and to the point. "Where's everyone else?"
"Tim's on the other side of the wall with Dr. Kinkade," Ben pointed to a dividing wall that hid another side of the resaurant, then just grinned and went back to his paper.
Lucas nodded, wondering to ask about Samantha, but kept his mouth shut. He wasn't quite awake yet, and by the smell of it, the restaurant's coffee had been made fresh that morning. He just hoped it was better than the ship's blended excuse.
Tunnel vision lead him to the breakfast bar and the bagles there in. He glanced quickly up at the mirror reflecting the food --a technique used to make it more astheticaly appealing-- flicked at his hair, and proceeded to fill his plate. He worked at the kink in his neck with one hand while reaching for the cream cheese with the other and again glanced up at the mirror.
"Ah!" he cried out, dropping the cream cheese with wide blue eyes. ~Oh lord! It happened again!~
"Ah!" Samantha screamed, jerking her hand from her neck where she had an itch mirroring where Lucas had the crimp. She had expected to see her face in the mirror, not his. Turns out there was a gap in the mirror where one could reach to the other side for an extra serving of bagels. "Jesus, Lucas, what are you trying to do, give me a heart attack?!"
Lucas heart rate slowly returned to normal. "I was trying to get breakfast."
She swallowd her heart. Samantha picked up a plain bagel and set it on her plate, relieved to not see Lucas mimic the action. "What are you doing here? I thought you'd be in Australia by now."
Lucas shrugged and reached for the peaches, plopping them next to a pile of hashbrowns. "That's what the captain said last night. There was a change of plans and I'm stuck here for leave."
"What happened?" Samantha, glanced to the hashbrowns, ~He'll never give up,~ grabbed the peach spoon on her side and ladled some onto her plate. The two countered each other on opposite sides as they worked their way down the breakfast bar.
"There was an explosion at World Power and my dad doesn't want me there."
"Wow, that sucks. What anyone hurt?"
"No, just minor injuries, but the radiation levels are too high to allow anyone in or out."
"Are you ok?"
He looked up briefly, taking the pause a little longer than he should have. "Yea. Now I've got 3 days with nothing to do. Figured I'd head back to SeaQuest."
"Are you insane?"
Lucas glared at his reflection in the mirror. "Don't go there."
"I'm just saying it's shore leave. Enjoy it."
"Doing what? Yesterday I came up with a sub design. This would be the perfect chance to work on it without Commander Ford breathing down my neck."
"The captain would probably send the commander back with you."
He snorted. "My luck."
They reached the end of the bar where the mirror edge split a collection of pastries. Samantha looked curiously up at him. "What kind of sub?"
"A single seat fighter."
"Got a name for it?"
"Yea, the Stinger."
She nodded and popped a peach into her mouth. "Work out the details here."
"You're up to somthing. I can feel it."
She swallowed with a grin. "My dad's taking me to the site today. The captain's coming as well. You might be interested. If anything you can use the time to work on the Stinger design. It sounds cool..."
"No, you can't help."
"Butthead," she frowned.
"Mmhmm," Lucas grinned and thought her offer over. Other than seeing her irate about not being a part of a project, he concidered the idea a fair one, and to his acceptance, intreguing. "An actual Egyptian excavation site... Very cool."
"I'll tell my dad. Be outside in an hour." Samantha grinned, grabbed a napkin and turned toward the other side of the restaruant dining area where her father and Tim were talking over bacon and eggs.
Lucas recognized the man she labled as her father to be the same one that ran into him at the elevator. For a split second, he thought about telling her what happened, then quickly shook the thought. He poured a cup of coffee and set it on his tray.
She sighed and side-glanced back to the blond teenager, who shrugged with a reserved half grin as if to say 'sorry, can't help ya there.'
The two left the bar to opposite sides of the room, opposite breakfast groups, but with their backs to each other.
Ben looked over as Lucas sat down and started in on the coffee. Behind him, barely visable through some potted ferns, he saw Samantha do the same. "You two are never going to get over this, are you?" he grinned slightly at the light hearted humor.
Lucas' blue eyes flicked to the moral officer.
Ben had enough time to use his napkin as a sheild against the kid's quick use of a spoon as a peach launcher.
***There should be more coming up, but give me some time, please and many bows. What will the SEAQUEST crew encounter in the deserts of Egypt? Stay tuned for the next exiting installment of Walk On the Ocean. ***
And now, chapter 8.****
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~The next morning...~
Lucas got up before the captain had awoken and glanced to the small digital clock set on the end table. 6am. Way too early for someone who's average wake-up time was 10 am. He stretched stiff muscles and yawned, reaching for the ceiling and squinted in the early morning light the curtains allowed to spill across the carpet. ~Why does this room have to face east?~ he thought. His head felt light, his feet tingled from sudden pressure, and his stomach told him clearly breakfast needed to come soon.
He grumbled. The couch was comfortable, but it had left a bad crimp in his neck. Slipping on his shoes, he eased out of room 301 and made his way down the hall to the stairs at the end. Since last night's incident, his want to take the elevator had decreased a conciderable amount. Besides, it was a good excuse to excersise.
The hotel restaurant was decorated in bright colors with a simple carpet pattern. The colonial dark wood chairs were neatly aranged around each identicle table, a breakfast bar ran through the center of the room flanked heavily by ferns, and the clattering of dishes in the back refreshed his sense of morning. He waved to a group of familiar people taking up a table near one of the sheer covered windows.
"Good morning, Lucas," Katie sipped her coffee with a general greeting to him.
Miguel had his mouth full of biscuts and gravy, but managed a friendly wave. Ben sat on the other side of the table reading a copy of the Alexandria Times. He glanced up with raised brows. "Morning, Luke. What are you doing here?"
Lucas thought that looked too comfortable for the way Ben and Katie always approached mornings on the ship. "Change of plans," he yawned. It was a good explanation: short, simple and to the point. "Where's everyone else?"
"Tim's on the other side of the wall with Dr. Kinkade," Ben pointed to a dividing wall that hid another side of the resaurant, then just grinned and went back to his paper.
Lucas nodded, wondering to ask about Samantha, but kept his mouth shut. He wasn't quite awake yet, and by the smell of it, the restaurant's coffee had been made fresh that morning. He just hoped it was better than the ship's blended excuse.
Tunnel vision lead him to the breakfast bar and the bagles there in. He glanced quickly up at the mirror reflecting the food --a technique used to make it more astheticaly appealing-- flicked at his hair, and proceeded to fill his plate. He worked at the kink in his neck with one hand while reaching for the cream cheese with the other and again glanced up at the mirror.
"Ah!" he cried out, dropping the cream cheese with wide blue eyes. ~Oh lord! It happened again!~
"Ah!" Samantha screamed, jerking her hand from her neck where she had an itch mirroring where Lucas had the crimp. She had expected to see her face in the mirror, not his. Turns out there was a gap in the mirror where one could reach to the other side for an extra serving of bagels. "Jesus, Lucas, what are you trying to do, give me a heart attack?!"
Lucas heart rate slowly returned to normal. "I was trying to get breakfast."
She swallowd her heart. Samantha picked up a plain bagel and set it on her plate, relieved to not see Lucas mimic the action. "What are you doing here? I thought you'd be in Australia by now."
Lucas shrugged and reached for the peaches, plopping them next to a pile of hashbrowns. "That's what the captain said last night. There was a change of plans and I'm stuck here for leave."
"What happened?" Samantha, glanced to the hashbrowns, ~He'll never give up,~ grabbed the peach spoon on her side and ladled some onto her plate. The two countered each other on opposite sides as they worked their way down the breakfast bar.
"There was an explosion at World Power and my dad doesn't want me there."
"Wow, that sucks. What anyone hurt?"
"No, just minor injuries, but the radiation levels are too high to allow anyone in or out."
"Are you ok?"
He looked up briefly, taking the pause a little longer than he should have. "Yea. Now I've got 3 days with nothing to do. Figured I'd head back to SeaQuest."
"Are you insane?"
Lucas glared at his reflection in the mirror. "Don't go there."
"I'm just saying it's shore leave. Enjoy it."
"Doing what? Yesterday I came up with a sub design. This would be the perfect chance to work on it without Commander Ford breathing down my neck."
"The captain would probably send the commander back with you."
He snorted. "My luck."
They reached the end of the bar where the mirror edge split a collection of pastries. Samantha looked curiously up at him. "What kind of sub?"
"A single seat fighter."
"Got a name for it?"
"Yea, the Stinger."
She nodded and popped a peach into her mouth. "Work out the details here."
"You're up to somthing. I can feel it."
She swallowed with a grin. "My dad's taking me to the site today. The captain's coming as well. You might be interested. If anything you can use the time to work on the Stinger design. It sounds cool..."
"No, you can't help."
"Butthead," she frowned.
"Mmhmm," Lucas grinned and thought her offer over. Other than seeing her irate about not being a part of a project, he concidered the idea a fair one, and to his acceptance, intreguing. "An actual Egyptian excavation site... Very cool."
"I'll tell my dad. Be outside in an hour." Samantha grinned, grabbed a napkin and turned toward the other side of the restaruant dining area where her father and Tim were talking over bacon and eggs.
Lucas recognized the man she labled as her father to be the same one that ran into him at the elevator. For a split second, he thought about telling her what happened, then quickly shook the thought. He poured a cup of coffee and set it on his tray.
She sighed and side-glanced back to the blond teenager, who shrugged with a reserved half grin as if to say 'sorry, can't help ya there.'
The two left the bar to opposite sides of the room, opposite breakfast groups, but with their backs to each other.
Ben looked over as Lucas sat down and started in on the coffee. Behind him, barely visable through some potted ferns, he saw Samantha do the same. "You two are never going to get over this, are you?" he grinned slightly at the light hearted humor.
Lucas' blue eyes flicked to the moral officer.
Ben had enough time to use his napkin as a sheild against the kid's quick use of a spoon as a peach launcher.
***There should be more coming up, but give me some time, please and many bows. What will the SEAQUEST crew encounter in the deserts of Egypt? Stay tuned for the next exiting installment of Walk On the Ocean. ***