"Captain" Walter Jones, and perhaps, the continuing story of the Warden

Aldovar_EdAldovar_Ed Member
edited July 2021 in TF86 Headquarters
What this is:
This thread will be more or less for my musings, I've had the urge to write lately and 86 has for the most part always been my home. The Warden and Walter Jones have been around in some capacity under my watch for about 11 years or so. We were always one of the more unusual ships in the fleet as for a long time as we were the only civilian operation for a long time.  Alas, a full time Simm is just not in the cards at the moment. So, as time goes on, this may be a long term fiction, a retelling of stories as told by a old, rambling, drunk of a captain,  new ones to entertain and delight, and maybe, the jumping off point to something bigger. Stay tuned to this space!

Story so Far
Chapter 1: Ship in a bottle
Chapter 2: What's in the box?
Chapter 3: Any fruits or vegetables?

Main Characters:
Walter Jones
Walter Jones is a loveable, kind hearted, good natured, reliable, "Captain". At least that is what it says on his business card. How much of that is truth, and how much of that is fiction is really anyone's guess. His crew and his ship "generally" come first, all other things are negotiable.

Recurring Characters:
Kroth son of Krolin - Former Captain of the Iw HIq yev
Keralm - Andorian hired help
Andu Walker -  Shady associate/buyer
Ship:
Little more complicated.

The SS Warden was/is a Groumall class freighter, dedicated to long haul shipping and bulk goods delivery. Though it was used for all manner of shady dealings, behind the lines missions, and deliveries. The Warden was even the lead element of a Task Force wide assault. It has been all over the Alpha, Beta, And Gamma Quadrants with its ragtag band of misfits. 

Where the Warden is currently, Walter either doesn't know or doesn't want to say.

The current "SS Warden" is a shuttle of dubious ownership and questionable spaceworthyness. 

Comments

  • Aldovar_EdAldovar_Ed Member
    edited July 2021

    Chapter 1: Ship in a Bottle

    Setting SB86 Bar


    "I was a Captain of starship you know!" He turned and looked at the Klingon that he was sharing a drink with, and then turned to an Ensign that was sitting at the counter next to him. "I was out punching Lagashi in the face before you were crawling!" Jones downed what was left in the cup, the Klingon laughed, the Ensign looked uncomfortable.
    "Who would ever let you touch a ship Jones!" The Klingon pounded his mug on the bar. The bartender came and dropped off two more drinks at the counter.
    Walt turned and looked at the Klingon. "What do you mean who would let me touch a ship. It was my ship!"
    "Well where is it now?" The Klingon grabbed the mug and pointed it at Jones.
    "Safe." He paused and looked at the mug. "It is in safe keeping right now."
    "HA!" The Klingon laughed. "That is what liars say."
    "Maybe I am, maybe I aint." Walt smiled and turned towards the Ensign. "What do you think?"
    At first the Ensign didn't say anything. Keeping to his iced tea.
    "Well little one!" The Klingon pointed at the Ensign.
    "I think it is the ramblings of a drunk old man." The Ensign didn't look up from his drink.
    "Bwha" Jones made a shocked expression at the Klingon. "Who is he calling old?"
    The Klingon laughed and pounded the drink.
    The Ensign turned and looked at Jones and stood up. "Perhaps, you should make your boasts a little bit less grandiose." He walked away as both Jones and the Klingon laughed.
    "You know I have a ship right Kroth?" The old salt turned back towards the Klingon who was getting up himself.
    "Sure you do old friend.. sure you do." Kroth threw a few strips of Latinum down. "You are expensive."
    "Hey, who you calling expensive." Jones smacked the Klingon on the shoulder and watched as Kroth walked away.
  • Aldovar_EdAldovar_Ed Member
    edited July 2021

    Chapter 2: What's in the box?

    Setting: Unnamed Rock of a Planet in the Triangle

    "You will respect the Captain!" The Andorian pointed the phaser rifle at the trio of humans across from him. 

    "Jones, I thought you said he was cool!" Andu Walker scowled as his two associates pulled their phasers and pointed them at Walter Jones, Kroth son of Krolin, and Keralm, a rather diminutive male Andorian. 

    "I told you I didn't want any trouble and now, your Andorian pet is making me nervous. You know what happens when I'm nervous!" Andu's hand twitched as he held the phaser. 

    The unglamorous and boring rock that the six found themselves now in a standoff over was deep enough in the Triangle that no one would come looking for them. A barely functioning shuttlecraft with 'SS Warden' Scrawled across the hull was the backdrop. 

    "Don't make me have to shoot you." The Andorian's gaze narrowed.

    "Boss let me waste them! We'll take that shuttle and burn it, make it looked like they crashed."

    "That shuttle is a re" The words drifted off as a phaser blast hit Keralam.

    Walter put the phaser back on his hip. "This, this is what happens when I go through a temp agency for crew." Jones shook his head as the Andorian crumbled to the ground, drool fell from his lip, a slight snore now emanated from his mouth, and antenna drooped like a wilted flower. “Good kid, just, well. We cool?”

    Andu and his men lowered their phasers.

    "Look, I've got the device, not sure what you need it for, don't care, freight is freight. Got my payment?" Walt kicked a wooden crate. "All in working order, slightly older and considered salvage, but with a little tinkering you should be able to get it to do what you want it do."

    Walker stared at the box, then back to Jones, then to one of the henchman. The henchman tossed a PADD towards Walt. 

    The Klingon knelt down with a bit of trouble and grabbed the PADD, flicking through it, he nodded to Jones. "I may be a Klingon but my back is old and tired and our help is now on the ground." He looked at the Andorian who had curled into a fetal position, and had placed his thumb in his mouth.

    "Go grab the box." Walker nodded to the other man with him. “This better be on the up and up Jones.”

    “We are standing on a rock, in an unregulated sector of space. I don’t know how much more on the up and up this could be.” Walt motioned for the Klingon to step back from the box.

    “Fair point” Andu watched as his colleague stepped over the Andorian, grabbed the box, and brought it over.

    “It’s in there, I promise.” Walt starting looking over the Padd. “Just know that if you fire that up, every Federation ship in the sector is going to come looking for you. Not against rules to have it, just you can’t use it or turn it on, it is a “curio and relic”, collectors only.”

    Walker opened the crate and smiled. “Alright boys, let’s get going. We’ve got what we came for. Jones, good seeing you, good doing business again with you.” Andu tapped a button and the three disappeared into the shimmer of a transporter beam.

    “What do we do with him?” The Klingon nudged the Andorian with his boot.

    “Throw him on the ship, we’ll wake him up when we get back to the station.” Walt looked at the Andorian.

    “You throw him on the ship.”

    “I thought you were my help.” Jones frowned.

    “You’re the captain.”

    “Fine, though it is coming out of your pay.”

    “We are getting paid for this? I thought I was just doing charity work for you.”

    “Oh, well yeah, we aren’t getting paid then, I’ll buy you a drink when we get back.”

    “Here, I’ll help you.” The Klingon grabbed the feet of the Andorian.

    “Alright.” Jones grabbed the phaser rifle and threw it on Keralam’s chest. “Heavy for a small Andorian.”

    The two carried the Andorian in and laid him in the back of the shuttle. With a little coaxing, the shuttle fired up, and the three lifted off, back into the dark space of the Triangle.

    “What was the cargo.” The Klingon, who had wedged himself into one of the passenger seats, chomped on a sandwich.

    “Subspace relay, old, decommissioned tech, by my estimation, it was about fiftyish years old.. I am just playing currier for them.” Jones typed in the coordinates of the station, back safely in Federation space.

    “What do you think he wanted with it?”

    “Who knows. Not really my concern.”

  • Aldovar_EdAldovar_Ed Member
    edited July 2021

    Chapter 3: Any fruits or vegetables?

    SB86 - Customs Control Docking Bay Alpha Seven

    "Any fruits or vegetables?" The Lieutenant dryly looked at a PADD and then looked up at the crew of Ferengi that stood before him.

    "Ohh... I see.. the customary bribe..." The Ferengi reached into his pocket and put two strips of latinum down on the counter. 

    "Not needed, do you have any fruits or vegetables?" The Lieutenant pushed the latinum back towards the Ferengi.

    "What does it matter to you huu-mahn! I am the sixth cousin twice removed to the four hundred and twenty second grand Nagus!" The Ferengi scowled. 

    "Just answer the question, I'm on shift for another six hours and I can stand here for all six of them. The next duty officer is going to ask the same question... do you have any fruits or vegetables?" The Lieutenant looked back towards him.

    Walt and Kroth listened on from behind the Ferengi as they went back and forth.

    "Foul creatures. Every one of them" Kroth scowled as he shifted the almost dead weight of Keralm between him and Jones.

    "I mean, not all of the species are as advanced as you and I here." Walt looked over at Kroth.

    "Yeah.... yeah!" Keralm mumbled a bit as he pulled up his head up to look around before he let it drop again.

    "Welcome to Starbase Eightysix. Next." The Lieutenant handed some papers back to the Ferengi and waved them through. Walter and company moved forward.

    "Passes please." The Lieutenant waved them forward. 

    "We don't need no passess!" The Andorian, who was still partially dazed, yelled at the Lieutenant.

    "What's wrong with him?"

    "Too much shore leave." Jones smiled and fished a data key. "He's fine, good kid, just got out of a really tough bond."

    The Lieutenant took the data key and inserted it into the kiosk. "Do you have any fruits or vegetables" he paused for a moment "Mr. Papagiorgio..." The Lieutenant looked at Jones, and then back to the Kiosk and then tapped the comm badge. "Lieutenant Dyles to Commander Shen, can you please come to customs desk Alpha Seven?"

    "What seems to be the matter Lieutenant and who is..." 

    "Mr. Papagiorgio, there is nothing to worry about. Please remain patient while my supervisor looks at this." Lieutenant Dyles finally cracked a smile.

    "Walt, why is he calling you Papagiorgio? Your name is Walter Jones...." The Andorian turned and looked at the Captain. "Walter Jones.. Captain of the" 

    Jones smiled and chuckled. "I'm sure there is some mistake, heh. Have you tried pulling out the chip and putting back into the Kiosk.. I mean, I don't mean to tell you how to do your job Lieutenant, but I'm sure you very good at your job. Starfleet cross recipient, I'm sure we can put you in for that honor."

    "I'm sure that we will get this figured out shortly sir." 

    A Bolian Lieutenant Commander walked up the the Kiosk and pulled aside Dyles to chat before turning back to Walter and company.

    "I'm Lieutenant Commander Shen, there seems to be an anomaly with your identification?" the Bolian stared at Walter.

    "And what the hell is that, as a citizen of the Federation and founding member of Polaris Trade Guild, I demand that this be resolved."

    "Sir, that seems to be the issue Mr. Papagiorgio, you are marked as deceased." 

    "If he's dead then make him move!" A Salonian woman yelled from behind Jones, "We've been waiting for twenty minutes, if you don't get this moving, I'll be dead too." 

    "I assure you, I'm not quite dead." Walter yelled at the Woman before turning back to the Lieutenant Commander. "Your mistake, not mine, and who the hell is Papagiorgio.."

    "Sir, We are going to need to hold you and your associates for further questioning." The Commander tapped on his comm badge. "Shen to security."

    "Now see here." Walt pushed the Andorian off of his shoulder, who, without the extra support, crumpled to the floor. "I am Captain" He placed extra emphasis on the captain portion. "Captain Walter Jones, and I demand to see your supervisor."

    "I am the supervisor." Shen scowled at Jones.

    "Then get me the head of Starfleet, The Nagus, President of the Federation, The Queen, whoever the hell I need to talk to get let me through this affront to my dignity, Kroth's honor, and whatever the hell his ancestors crave." He pointed at the Andorian who was trying to pick himself up.

    "Mr. Papagi"

    "I don't know why your damn database says that is me, but"

    "Look, whoever you are then." The Bolian's brow crumbled as three Starfleet security officers arrived. "You are going to be spending a bit of time in a holding cell until we can figure out what the issue is, then and only then will you be allowed to move through. 

    Kroth started to reach for his dagger before Walt shook his head. "It is a good thing I haven't been paid yet for my services, because today would have been a good day to die." 

    "You are going to regret this, I hope you enjoyed that hollow pip on your neck, because it is going to be gone after I file my complaint! If it is one thing I know, it is bureaucratic red tape and how to gripe!" Jones stopped and stuck his hands up as the three security pulled their phasers. 

    "I will defend you captain!" Keralm, whom had finally gotten up, lunged towards the security officers and took a stun beam to the face. The blast dropped Keralm to the floor.

    "That's the second one in like five hours he got, you may have just made him lose memories of his childhood or something." Walt with his hands still up motioned for Kroth to do the same.

    "Alright, pick him up." Shen motioned to the Andorian. Two of the officers grabbed the Andorian from the ground, while the third kept his phaser trained on Jones and Kroth. "Take them to holding cell five, throw them in there with the Orion. Alright, back to work everyone."

    Walt frowned as the security officers hauled them out of the area. "You are going to regret this."

    The Lieutenant who was working the kiosk waved the Solanian woman forward.  "Welcome to Starbase Eightysix, do you have any fruits or vegetables?"

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