[Round 9] Talks With Tutors

[Guest]

(( STARFLEET ACADEMY – LECTURE HALLS ))

:: In the old lecture room, Ethan tucked his hands into his uniform

pockets and stepped down the extended stairwell of the staggered

strips of computers. The décor hadn't changed much but the familiar

old feeling bubbled up. Being a young student in there and being

afraid of handing in his homework in case Abersmyth found out he'd

been up all night in the bar instead of revising his warp theory.::

:: The door to the Professor's Office swished open and the aging

Professor walked out, holding a padd and wearing the standard long

blue coat he remembered. Ethan walked slowly down the staggered

stairwell and came to the desk. Looking up, Abersmyth smiled and

chuckled at seeing the young Engineer.::

Abersmyth: I believe you still owe me some homework, Mister Brice; a

piece on propulsion theory, if I do remember correctly.

Brice: Commander. I never could get anything past you, could I?

:: The older woman smiled, showing the crows feet that had started to

appear at the corners of her eyes. Her hair was still the old brown

it always had been, now with flecks of grey above her ears.::

Abersmyth: And I doubt you could now. Anyway, what brings you back

to Earth?

:: Ethan picked up a warp core model from the desk and took a look

through the centre.::

Brice: The Ronin sustained hefty damage out in the Ithassa Sector;

needs more repairs then we could handle without a space dock. The

hull looks like we've been sharpening it on Saturn's ring.

Abersmyth: That bad? ::she gave a low whistle:: That's some

damage.

Brice: We were stranded for a few days before the Wellington could

come and collect us. We were towed back at minimum speed. It made

for some interesting weeks stuck on board.

Abersmyth: I can imagine. So; the crew of the Ronin has descended

upon the planet. ::she laughed:: Let's hope someone can cope with

them all.

:: Picking up another padd from the desk, she looked at the two and

alternated for a few moments between them, perhaps slightly

confused. Ethan bit back a laugh. She was the cooky Professor.

They used to joke that she'd been exposed to too much antimatter and

that, along with the zillion cups of coffee, had frazzled the

brain..::

Abersmyth: Are you around for long?

:: Ethan replaced the scale model.:: Brice: A while I should

imagine. A… friend of mine is taking an exam in the Halls. Not to

mention a wedding. I should think we'll be around for a long while

yet.

Abersmyth: Well, if you have an evening free, you should come for an

evening with us. We're having a meeting on various additions to the

curriculum and as a graduate and specialist, I'm sure you'll want to

put your two bits in.

:: She beamed and moved around the desk, stuffing a padd in her

pocket and finally held her hand out to Ethan, which he took.::

Abersmyth: It's good to see you again, Ethan. Chief Engineer of the

Ronin. Who'd have thought it, coming from the young man who couldn't

remember where one class was to the next. ::she sighed loudly::

I've got another hour until my next class so if you have a spare one,

you can run through some of the latest research with me.

:: Ethan gestured to the stairwell.:: Brice: Lead on, Commander.

TBC

Lt. Ethan Brice

Chief of Engineering

USS Ronin